


helpless (i'm helpless)

by princessoftheworlds



Series: helpless [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Actor Bucky Barnes, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Celebrities, F/F, Identity Porn, M/M, Nomad Steve Rogers, Off-Screen Terrorist Attacks, Social Media, Vigilantism, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-24
Updated: 2018-03-10
Packaged: 2019-03-22 21:07:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 28,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13772580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessoftheworlds/pseuds/princessoftheworlds
Summary: The Sokovian Accords were created right after the Battle of New York. It's 2017, and the Avengers are stuck under the UN's thumb. Captain Steve Rogers is mostly retired and doesn't protest when Tony drags him out to a movie premiere. Out on the red carpet, he bumps into Oscar-nominated actor James Barnes and falls so hard that Tumblr and Twitter won't stop shipping them.It's 2017, and the Winter Soldier can't stand idly by while his city falls into ruins from the rampant crime, the Avengers made practically useless. He just doesn't expect to run into Nomad in a back alley.Or, a two-dimensional love story told in three parts.





	1. look into your eyes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TrishArgh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrishArgh/gifts), [MarleyMortis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarleyMortis/gifts).



> This fic is my the first part of my contribution to the Shrunkyclunks Bang 2018! It was a fun couple of months writing this! I'd like to thank my artist [TrishArgh](http://frau-argh.tumblr.com/) for the gorgeous art they've created, [lostthebucky](http://lostthebucky.tumblr.com/) for betaing again, [Heidi](http://nikolailantsov.tk/) for cheerleading. I would most especially like to thank [MarleyMortis](http://marleymortis.tumblr.com/) for advising me and just being plan awesome.
> 
> This is the first of three parts, so please read and review if you enjoy it!

**Macbeth** @officialmacbethmovie

Join @officaljamesbbarnes and @RealTrishWalker as they take over this Twitter in countdown to tonight’s premiere!

 

 **CapTracker** @gottacatchthecap

Cap spotted out at lunch with fellow Avenger Sam Wilson at Rina’s near Prospect Park #lunchbuddies

 

* * *

 

jaimesbarnes

 

 

> gah! our boy’s going to be out looking hot on the red carpet tonite! can’t wait to see those new pics floating all over my dash

#james barnes #macbeth #macbethmovie #gawd so hot #nina rambles

 

Anonymous: did you hear about that there’s a new howling commandos movie in the works over at netflix?

capwouldnotstandforthis: nope! This is the first time I’m hearing of this, nony, and I’m a bit hopeful b/c it’s Netflix. but also it’s a Cap movie and they haven’t tried one since the early 2000s. anyone remember it? Steven Spielberg’s _Captain America: Patriot for Justice_ , gawd it was so fucking bad. Matt Damon as Cap wasn’t a bad choice, but Keira Knightley had so much potential as Agent Carter but they reduced her role to a USO showgirl, made her nothing more than his girlfriend. Don’t get me started on what they did to Gabe Jones and James Morita…

#ask #that movie fucking pissed me off #legit like gabe jones’ family ended up suing the studio #the lawsuit lasted five years #look the only way this movie will work out will be if they focus more on the team aspect rather than cap as the ultimate celebrity and hero #cap deserves the credit don’t get me wrong #but it’s time for people like peggy carter gabe jones and james morita to get their due #no one ever remembers that jacques dernier came out as bi in the 80s #he said that the entire team knew and no one cared #why do we never see that in the movies

 

james-barnes-can-keep-my-barnes-doors-open 

 

 

> ultimateshakespearefan
> 
> I have tickets for the premiere and I’m excited but I don’t know what to expect. James Barnes is not the most conventional actor to cast as Macbeth? I remember him on Gossip Girl??? He made me conflicted between liking and hating Carter Baizen but how will he do with Shakespeare?

i’m hella ready for this!!! remember political animals? we recognized his talent, even when the only role he was typecast for were weeping gay boys. he excelled at that, he was fucking awesome in the martian, and he’ll ace the fuck out of this

#i am so so ready #excited af #james barnes #ultimateshakespearefan

 

avengeance

 

 

> guys my bro works for macbeth’s pr team and he heard rumors that tony stark has tickets for the premiere??? two tickets in fact

#this could be exciting!!!!!! #so ready #i might see him tonight #my bro also got me tickets

 

* * *

 

**Tony**

hey capiscle. got any plans tonight?

 

**Steve**

Hey Tony. Not really. I was going to stay in and watch this new documentary on the moon landing on Netflix.

 

**Tony**

pftt, you can do that any day. now, do you have a suit handy? ya know, something that’ll give a lil razzle dazzle

 

**Steve**

I do, but why….

 

**Steve**

Tony???

 

**Tony**

sorry mon capitaine, i got just the slightest bit distracted. how do you feel about macbeth?

 

**Steve**

Macbeth? It was one of Peggy’s favorite Shakespeare plays; she introduced to his works.

 

**Tony**

great! i scored us two tickets to tonight’s premiere of taika waititi’s new macbeth!

 

**Steve**

Why don’t you take Pepper?

 

**Tony**

she’s meeting a wedding planner in japan. said that if i tried helping with the wedding, we wouldn’t be getting married until 2020. besides, we’re all kinda worried about you, steven. you don’t really go out anywhere anymore

 

**Steve**

Hey!! I went to lunch with Sam today.

 

**Tony**

only because we planned for you to. he’s the only one you see regularly, and for running too.

 

**Steve**

Fine! I’ll come.

 

**Tony**

happy’s going to pick you up at eight

 

* * *

 

“I’m not sure about this, Tony,” Steve grits out of the corner of his mouth as he stands, lips fixed in a steady smile, eyes stretched unblinkingly against the flashes of the cameras, left arm threaded around Tony’s waist.

“Stand still and look pretty,” Tony drawls back cheerfully. “You’re doing fine. Look; they’re lapping it up.” He leans up and presses a light kiss to Steve’s cheek, and the cameras click rapidly. “So tense. Just lighten up and have fun. You’re here to see a movie!”

There is an outburst of loud cheers and applause a little further down on the red carpet as a shiny limo pulls up and a new arrival steps out. Through the mass of photographers, Steve can only make out a delicate ankle clad in a strappy, black heel, but Tony leans past Steve and catches a glimpse of the ankle’s owner.

“Looks like Lady Macbeth just made her way to the red carpet,” Tony announces. “I’m gonna go say hi. Catch ya in a bit, Cap.” He flashes the photographers a little smirk and bows mischievously before shouldering his way past them and disappearing from Steve’s sight.

“Tony,” Steve calls after him in a futile effort, his shoulders slumping slightly for a moment before he rolls them, straightens his spine, and turns to the photographers. “Pardon me, ladies and gentlemen.”

He stumbles past them, ignoring their cries of “Captain Rogers, Captain Rogers,” and catches a glimpse of Tony chatting with Trish Walker, wearing something silky and red that make her cheeks pop with color.

“Captain Rogers.”

Steve turns, and there she is, Tony’s least favorite reporter, a real shark of a journalist, Christine Everhart.

“Hello, Ms. Everhart,” he says civilly, if not a bit coolly.

She published a scathing piece on the Avengers last year in Vanity Fair, declaring Clint “the useless Avenger,” and Natasha as “a feminist’s greatest nightmare.” And that was just in the first three paragraphs.

“Captain Rogers,” she repeats, eyes glinting, teeth stretched like fangs in a wide smile, circling closer to Steve like she’s cornering him. “What was your intent for coming out here tonight? Especially for _Macbeth_.”

“Maybe I just like Shakespeare,” Steve counters sarcastically. “Isn’t that a possibility, Ms. Everhart?”

She sniffs. “Yes, but why this Shakespeare work? Why one where a loyal soldier betrays his king and seizes power? Is this a sign you’re considering running for president considering the lack of true power the Avengers now have?”

Steve grits his teeth but relaxes his shoulders and gives Everhart a little smirk. “In all honesty, ma’am,” he tells her with some of his old-fashioned charm, “I’m just here to catch a flick with my ol’ pal, Tony. If I’m looking for ulterior motive in every little thing, I must really have nothing to look to in life, and that sounds bleak and lonely. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe I have somewhere else to be.”

He shoulders past her, sneaking a look back to find her seething with rage. He grins briefly before colliding face-first with an impressively muscular and broad chest.

“Oh, shit,” the owner of the chest says, his voice a velvety blanket of night sky that makes Steve’s insides feel a little rubbery, as he places warm hands on Steve’s shoulders to steady him. “Careful. Don’t want to face-plant with the carpet.”

“That wasn’t my plan,” Steve murmurs with an embarrassing lack of eloquence for someone of his stature.  

The man chuckles richly before glances up with twinkling eyes that widen when he finally lays them on Steve. “Fuck…Captain Rogers,” he whispers softly in awe. There’s a furious blush growing on his olive skin. He releases his grip on Steve and drops his hands loosely to his side, and Steve takes a step backwards. “I’m sorry. I didn’t see you there. I’m James Barnes.”

“You’re Macbeth,” Steve states in realization.

“Uh, yeah,” he says, shrugging boyishly. “I am.”

Before Steve can respond, photographers come rushing up to surround them. “James, James,” one of them demands. “Look this way. Smile. You too, Captain Rogers.”

James sneaks a quick look at Steve, giving him a slight and cocky smile. “Why don’t we give the people what they want?” he says with a causal and playful grace that Steve’s only seen in Natasha.

“Why not,” Steve responds, unable to resist flirting back a little.

The other man’s lips fall lightly open before curving into a genuine smile that crinkles at the corners of his mouth, causing his dimples to appear more pronounced. James locks gazes with Steve, and he becomes transfixed with staring at the actor’s steely blue eyes as they dilate and contract.

“We should probably get the show on the road,” James whispers after a moment.

Steve coughs awkwardly, officially ruining the moment. He coughs again to clear his throat and sighs. “You’re right,” he says hoarsely enough that James’ eyes darken appreciatively. “Don’t want to delay anyone.”

James snorts before slinging a strong arm around Steve’s shoulders. Together, they turn back to the cameras and pose. James is smirking wickedly, and the photographers are just lapping it up, calling out praise. Steve is smiling too, but his smile is a bit more genuine now.

The cameras flash again, but a harried woman on Steve’s right is now shouting James’ name. “Wrap it up,” she mouths at them, gesturing hastily.

“Just one more, folks,” James tells the photographers politely.

They pose for a few more moments before the woman barges through the crowd and latches onto James’ wrist, tugging him away gently. “Gotta get you inside the theater, Barnes,” she explains as she pulls him away. “Sorry, Cap. You should make your way inside too.”

“Thanks,” Steve tells her, moving to follow them.

“See you around, Rogers,” James calls just before he disappears into the building.

Steve gives him a quick salute before wandering off to find Tony.

 

* * *

 

_[img: Steve Rogers and James Barnes stand on a red carpet before a dark background. James is in a dark suit with purple accents while Steve is wearing a simple tuxedo. James’ right arm is slung over Steve’s shoulders, and Steve’s left arm is wrapped around James’ waist. Both men are peering directly into the camera; James is smirking while Steve is smiling gently.]_

**551, 600 likes**

**buzzfeedceleb** When two of our favorite hotties meet up #MACBETHTHEMOVIE #macbethredcarpet

 **falconsamwilson** Is this what you do in your free time, @officialsteverogers? Going full-celebrity without me?

 

* * *

 

 

 **EntertainmentTonight** @etnow

Trish Walker wows in Oscar de la Renta and James Barnes stuns in custom Alexander McQueen suit while attending the premiere of their “Macbeth” at the Ziegfeld Theatre on August 5, 2017 in New York City

 

 **barnesfan** @numerouno

Wowza! Is James Barnes going full blue steel on us? And him with Cap? Gawd. I think my knees wobbled a bit.

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

Loved seeing all the fans out there tonight! Really warmed my heart! Hope you enjoy the movie!

 

 **Jessica Jones** @jjones

@RealTrishWalker i’m ready to see you kill a king with @officialjamesbbarnes

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

@jjones I didn’t even know you had a Twitter, Jess.

 

* * *

 

avengeance

 

 

> guys! my bro was right! tony stark was there! and he brought captain america! i saw them, it was so fucking cool

#stark signed my iron man poster with ‘cool shirt dude’ #i was wearing my ‘pepper potts is my queen’ shirt #he said that she really is #ahhhh #tony stark #tony stark is a good guy #fan appreciation #tony stark appreciation post #captain america was there too #captain america #steve rogers

 

jaimesbarnes

 

 

> omg! i was so right! did you see the pictures of james? so fucking hot with that smirk…but those pictures with cap…i think my brain melted

#james barnes #they’re both so hot #cap’s like the same height #oh gawd #i’m hyperventilating from the sexiness of james’ smirk #nina rambles

hotandbotheredforrogers

 

 

> nataliaantasiaromanoff
> 
> guyssssss! i heard a rumor that cap and james barnes were caught staring into each other’s eyes. they have some hot chemistry! i don’t know how to react but i’m like kinda hopeful

i was at the premiere, and i can confirm this. they had a fucking moment, i swear! from where i was standing, it looked like they were flirting. like literal sparks were flying. they’d be so fucking cute together

#i swear to god #stevejames #stames? #they need a ship name

 

Anonymous: no way! cap can’t be gay! he dated peggy carter! uhuh. this is fake news.

hotandbotheredforrogers: hello???? you seriously can’t be this close-minded. bisexuality exists???? so cap can like both james barnes and peggy carter

#dani answers asks #ugh #stupid anon #trix is for kids

 

Anonymous: this is some sjw bullshit. peggy carter would not stand for this

hotandbotheredforrogers: ugh, you’re back. don’t you have anything better to do, troll? i hate to break it to you but peggy carter wasn’t straight. she was at least bi. she lived and dated famous broadway actress angie martinelli for at least twenty years after the death of her husband daniel sousa. they got married in 2010 when same-sex marriage was legalized in dc

#dani answers asks #seriously #stop trolling me #this is all such a simple google search #fucking troll

 

causalbarnesfan

 

 

> look, srsly. as exciting as it would be for either james barnes or steve rogers to come out as gay or bi or even pan, we shouldn’t speculate. just because they’re such famous figures, almost every aspect of their private lives have been made public and analyzed. can we let them have this and come out on their own terms?

#let them live their lives #james barnes #steve rogers #these are real people #rogers gave his life for us to live the way we do #give him whatever privacy he can take

 

* * *

 

1 – 20 of 5784 Works in James Barnes/Reader

 

1 – 7 of 7 Works in James Barnes/Steve Rogers

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: Director Taika Waititi’s _Macbeth_ receives Certified Fresh Rating from Rotten Tomatoes with score of 92%**

**BREAKING: Making her silver screen debut, radio star Trish Walker declared as break-out star of 2017’s _Macbeth_**

****

**BREAKING: Surprisingly, the best part of Taika Waititi’s _Macbeth_ may have been Macbeth himself: Or, how actor James Barnes ( _Gossip Girl, Political Animals, The Martian_ , and more) may have been who we were looking for the entire time**

**BREAKING: Is actor James Barnes the best Macbeth ever? Find out how he compares to Michael Fassbender and Sir Patrick Stewart**

 

* * *

 

 **Steve Rogers** @officialcaprogers

I watched @TaikaWaititi’s Macbeth, and I just want to say that I think that Mr. Waititi would get along great with @themightiestthor. Also, @RealTrishWalker made a spine-chilling Lady Macbeth, hats off to her performance (I listen to Trish Talk every morning!). But, greatest of all had to be the excellent @officialjamesbbarnes!

 

 **Taika Waititi** @TaikaWaititi

You know you’ve made it when an Avenger praises your work, thanks @officialcaprogers. And, if you’re reading this @themightiestthor, I feel like we have a lot more in common than simply being handsome men. We should get together.

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

Only the kindest of praise from you, Captain @officialcaprogers. Thank you so much. We would love to have you on @TrishTalks any day!

And, @jjones, I told you! Even superheroes like Shakespeare.

 

 **Thor** @themightiestthor

I am free any day, Mr. Waititi! @TaikaWaititi

 

 **James B. Barnes** @officialjamesbbarnes

@officialcaprogers, stop it! you’re making me blush!

 

 **Steve Rogers** @officialcaprogers

@officialjamesbbarnes No, really. You were phenomenal.

 

* * *

 

 

stamesforever

 

 

> steve and james are flirting on twitter! it’s the cutest thing ever!

#stames #it’s real #don’t let anyone tell you it’s not

 

hotandbotheredforrogers

 

 

> jaimesbarnes
> 
> do steve rogers and james barnes have a ship name? stames? stevejames? bargers? rarnes? captain barnes?

Captain Barnes sounds like James Barnes is a pirate captain. He’s captaining our ship.

#stames? #stames #james is captain of ship stames

 

ultimateshakespearefan

 

 

> @james-barnes-can-keep-my-barnes-doors-open you were right! james barnes was amazing af as macbeth, maybe the best one ever.

#james barnes #like #daamn #he’s so talented???  #the shit he does with his eyebrows??? #i think im going to go watch more of his works

james-barnes-can-keep-my-barnes-doors-open

 

 

> i was so fucking right! early reviews are in, and everyone loves james’ acting. he’s getting so much praise! i’m proud of our son, he deserves it

#i’m so excited for when awards season rolls around #james barnes #he’s finally getting his due #he’s getting recognized for the talent we recognized over five years ago

 

queentrishwalker

 

 

> Damn. We all knew Trish was brilliant, but I didn’t know what an amazing actor she was. She really is queen.

#trish walker #to all the people who will be spamming my ask box #i knew she was an actress #i remember the patsy walker show #but that was a million years ago #and a totally different type of media #also hot damn #james barnes was so fucking attractive #he’s almost scary as macbeth

 

thorlightssparksinme

 

 

> it may only be me but i am living for the taika x thor bromance

#taika waititi #thor odinson

 

Anonymous: why are you so far up stove ragers’ ass? he and the avengurs aren’t doing shit now. vigilantes like nomad do more for the safety of not only new york but also the world than they do.

hotandbotheredforrogers: wow…you really have no idea that i don’t want to hear your shit, do you? this is my blog, i can stan for whoever i want, and if that’s a patriotic hero, who, if I may add, gave his life for this country, then you can right and fuck off.

btw, history lesson time:

the battle of ny happened in 2012 and shield’s world council was pissed about how director fury sent the avengers to ny w/o their permission that they basically dissolved shield. the un got together and created the sokovian accords, which came into effect in 2014. they were named after the sokovian tragedy of 2013, which was not entirely the avengers’ faults. but since it was one of their biggest failures ever and one of their last missions as an independent team, it was a big fu to the avengers’ faces.

and then the accords basically leashed the avengers to the un. if the un says jump, cap steve rogers is forced to ask “how high?” they’ve basically becomes jokes, they can only be deployed where the un decides, so it all sucks, and there are a whole bunch of essays out there about why this is a shitty idea

#troll #troll in my house #ask #dani answers asks #why do i always get the fucking trolls #long ask #ugh #ugh ugh ugh

 

* * *

 

1 – 20 of 45 Works in James Barnes/Steve Rogers

1 – 2 of 2 Works in Taika Waititi and Thor Odinson

1 – 4 of 4 Works in James Barnes/Trish Walker

 

* * *

 

**TRENDING: Nomad, NY’s secret vigilante**

 

* * *

 

 **VigilanteUpdate** @vigilantejusticenyc

Nomad spotted stopping a burglary on corner of 5th and Broadway

 

 **Jonah Jameson** @jjjamesonofthedailybugle

Vigilantes are breaking the Sokovian Accords! What they are doing is illegal; they should be caught and brought to justice!

 

 **AngryFeminist** @indirarambles

Nomad rescued my sister when she was nearly raped in a back alley. Last year, @jjjamesonofthedailybugle published a story on why he believed that a sexual predator’s acting career was ruined and blamed the victims. Who does a better job of spreading justice?

 

* * *

 

avengeance 

 

 

> jonah jameson is a fucking piece of assshit. he’s talking out of his ass again. nomad saved my life months ago. i’ve never told anyone this but i was nearly mugged when i first moved here and nomad dropped into the the alley like a fucking ninja and elbowed my attacker in the face. he told me he liked my ‘peggy carter wouldn’t stand for this’ shirt.

#i am so angry right now #i wanna punch that pos in the face

 

jaimesbarnes: Gah, Nikhil! I’m so sorry, but I totally agree with you! Jonah Jameson is completely useless and should have been fired years ago

avengeance: this^^^^^^^^ and thank you nina!

#ask #positivity

 

* * *

 

Steve perches on the rooftop opposite the abandoned warehouse, peering down into the alley before it. About half an hour ago, before darkness fell, there had been six men shuffling between a discreetly-parked truck and the building’s entrance. Now, there’s only one man lingering, leaned against the wall with a cigarette in hand, barely lit by the faint light cast by the moon.

Steve could easily take him down with a well-placed punch, but that would draw attention if the man spots him while Steve’s sneaking up from behind. Thankfully, the front door doesn’t appear to be the only entrance; during his reconnaissance, he spotted a high window missing its window panes, a gap large enough for him to slip through easily.

So, he backs up and takes a running start, leaping just before he reaches the edge of the rooftop. His boots land lightly on a window ledge, and he clings to the warehouse’s outer wall like a cat, gripping carefully his gloved hands as he rounds the corner of the warehouse.

Sneaking through the window, he steps onto the catwalk and hunches down, using the gap in the railing before him to survey the interior of the warehouse.

The warehouse serves as a base for members of a drug-smuggling cartel that he tracked here after weeks of painstaking surveillance and ass-kicking, and Steve wants to gather every bit of information possible on the rest of the cartel before he dismantles this particular operation, even if it takes several more nights.

He allows his gaze to rove around, over wooden crates stacked high with boxes, over the exposed and empty shelves, over the men, rather stereotypically in Steve’s opinion, playing cards around a plastic table.

This appears to be a rather standard storage facility with some low-security; it’s guarded by about half a dozen men, but they’re also unarmed. In the eyes of the cartel, this warehouse is of low value, made obvious by the fact that it’s located almost smackdab in the middle of Brooklyn, but it proves an important target for Steve.

There’s a logo or something inked on the boxes, barely visible even to Steve’s own supersoldier eyes, and he squints at it, trying to make out any details.

He’s puzzling at it hard enough that he almost misses the man in black armor sneaking in through the front door.

Steve watches in bewilderment as the man creeps closer to the men gathered around the table until he’s close but still concealed by the shadows cast by the tower of boxes.

Then he springs out and, using the advantage of surprise, deliver an excellent uppercut to the nearest man’s chin, knocking him out of his chair.

“Fuck,” one of his companions, a brute of a guy with an impressive scar across his eye and the bridge of his nose, exclaims, rising to his feet only to be swept back to the ground by a swift kick to the knees.

There’s at least three men at the table, not counting their two comrades groaning on the floor, and the man in black blocks a direct punch to the gut and then grabs his opponent by the neck and literally throws him into the table, which slams violently as it topples right over and lands on the scarred brute.

The man in black neatly steps back to avoid a knife swipe before roundhouse-kicking his assailant into a wall with no lack of restraint.

The man is clearly skilled and well-trained, not on the same level as Clint or Natasha, but he would stand a chance against Sharon Carter, Nat’s girlfriend and a former agent of SHIELD. His show of strength and speed is almost similar to Steve’s however, which makes him wonder who this man is and where he came from.

Just then, the man is caught off-guard by the remaining cartel member and flung to the ground, and Steve winces, observing how he grits his teeth in pain.

The cartel member kneels and presses a knife to the man’s throat. “Who are you,” he singsongs in a raspy voice, “and how did you find us?”

The man gasps in response, straining to voice something. He wheezes a few times, and the cartel member seems to understand and draws the knife back so the man can cough, wheeze, and gasps a few more times before replying in a voice deep and smooth, “You do realize that it’s so stereotypical for you guys to be playing cards in a dark, abandoned warehouse. Right?”

Steve is forced to bite his bottom lip to prevent his abrupt chuckle from escaping.

The cartel member growls with rage and drags the knife even closer to the man’s neck. “Fine,” he says decisively. “There are other ways of getting the truth outta a man.”

The man in black tips his head back against the floor, lips tugging tightly together before stretching into a smirk. Steve can now clearly see the man’s face, though it’s mostly covered by a dark domino mask, and he knows when the man’s glacier-colored eyes find him up on the catwalk, because he gets a roguish wink.

 _Need some help_ , Steve mouths at him and watches as the man grits his teeth after a slight nod, the movement pressing his throat closer into the knife’s blade.

Steve makes his move then, grabbing the railing and hauling himself over. He hits the ground with momentum, rolling into a ball and springing back to his feet, before grabbing the cartel member and throwing him to the ground with enough force that his head cracks against the cement.

He reaches a hand out to the man in black, who takes it with a solid grip, and hauls him to his feet.

“Thanks,” the man says quietly, his voice a little breathless and hoarse.

Steve is prepared to chew out this man, likely a civilian for his carelessness, but his mouth opens, and that is not what comes out. “Maybe next time don’t sneak up on half a dozen members of a drug cartel,” Steve says almost cheekily.

The other man’s jaw drops slightly before it shuts abruptly, and his lips curve into the same smirk from before. “Noted,” he says. “Besides, it’s not every day that the great vigilante Nomad comes to save your ass.”

Steve is glad that he’s wearing a mask, a simple filtration facemask with a handy voice modulator that Tony built which adheres to skin, or else his vivid blush would be visible in the faint lighting of the warehouse. “I didn’t pick that name,” he says sheepishly. “I’m just a guy trying to do this city some good.”

“Well.” The other man shrugs. “So am I.”

“What can I call you then, fellow do-gooder?” Steve asks with some of the snark only ever seen by Natasha, Sam, and Tony.

“I’d tell you,” the man replies almost mysteriously, “but then there’d be no point of these.” He gestures to his and Steve’s masks with a raised eyebrow, but his smile is still crooked and not entirely serious. “You can call me the Winter Soldier.”

Right then, Steve is struck by the strange familiarity of this man. He’s not stirring anything in Steve’s memory, but he moves and talks in a way Steve’s seen before.

It might just be a passing resemblance, and Steve shrugs it off.

“Right,” he says unsurely; he’s not going to judge this guy’s alias when he himself is called Nomad. He then wonders if there’s any protocol for meeting a fellow vigilante. “How’d you find this place?”

“Followed one of these guys here,” the Winter Soldier replies. Behind him, a man groans, and the Soldier calmly walks over and punches him back into unconsciousness. “What about you?”

“I followed the drugs here,” Steve says as he points to the boxes. “Speaking of which.” He reaches for one of the boxes and easily tears the lid off, despite the box being nailed shut.

The Winter Soldier moves to take a peek inside and whistles sharply. “That’s a whole lotta crack,” he comments.

The Soldier’s right; the box is packed tightly with little clear baggies of white powder.

Anger stirs in Steve’s gut. These cartel members would have been distributing these drugs to nearby neighborhoods, ruining lives and families all for a pretty profit.

“Hey,” the Winter Soldier says suddenly, and Steve’s attention snaps to him, following the direction his finger is pointing to the crate below. “I’ve seen that at some of the other places I’ve been.”

It’s like Steve’s been sucker punched; the familiarity of the skull and eight tentacles sends him reeling back seventy years to when he first saw the logo on the side of a gun in Brooklyn, near an antique shop with a shattered storefront window.

“It’s the logo for HYDRA, the group that Cap battled in World War II,” the Winter Soldier rattles off, and Steve stares at him in surprise until he blushes and licks his lips nervously. “What? I’m a big history nerd. Anyways, I kept finding the logo in other places like this. It seemed like a coincidence then, but it’s probably all linked together. Some group is funneling drugs into New York, and they’re using HYDRA’s logo, which is fucked up as hell if you consider that the original HYDRA was chockfull of Nazis.”

“Fuck,” Steve whispers. “Fuck.”

The Soldier nods. “I second that.” He pauses for a moment. “Could they be connected to the original HYDRA?” he asks haltingly.

Steve presses his lips together in a tight line. “There’s only one way to find out,” he says grimly. “I have to stop them and bring them down.”

“Great,” the Soldier says sarcastically. “When do we start?” When Steve gapes at him, he continues, “Look. You can’t stop me from helping you, and I already proved myself. So, we can do this together. You don’t really know what you’re up against, the scale of this cartel or organization. I’d take my offer; even Cap had Agent Carter and the Commandos to back him.”

Steve almost chuckles at the coincidence of the Soldier’s reference. “I really did,” he murmurs quietly to himself.

The Soldier cocks his head. “Did you say something?”

Steve shakes his head before sighing. He considers the Soldier’s offer for a few moments before reaching a decision. “Fine,” he says finally as the Winter Soldier smirks. “We’ll work together. But on my terms.”

The Soldier shrugs. “That works for me.”

Steve’s ears pick up the faint sound of police sirens approaching, and he straightens up. “We gotta go. The police are coming.”

“I know,” the Soldier tells him. At Steve’s questioning look, he explains. “Let’s just say that I have some very sharp senses. Like you do. Because I know that those squad cars are at least two blocks away. When Steve attempts to protest, he goes on. “Look, you don’t want to talk about it, I don’t want to talk about it. We can leave it alone.”

“How did the police know where to come?” Steve counters swiftly.

“I called them,” the Soldier says casually. He notices Steve’s surprised expression and smirks; Steve realizes that he hates the sight of those luscious lips crooking into that cocky smile that causes his breath to catch slightly. “You didn’t think I would come in here without a backup plan, did you?”

Steve snorts. “Anything’s possible.”

The police sirens grow closer, and the Winter Soldier stiffens. “Gotta go,” he drawls. “When shall we meet again, my dear Nomad?”

Steve rolls his eyes. “Two nights. Towards the end of town, there’s an old gym. Goldie’s. Meet me on its roof around midnight.”

The Soldier shoots him a confident little salute before slinking into the shadows.

There’s the screech of tires against pavement sounding nearby as the police race down the final block.

Steve bites his lip, stretches his neck to the right and then to the left, and rolls his shoulders before stalking into the alley, using the darkness to his advantage to slip away as the police finally arrive at the scene.

 

* * *

 

**The following is a transcript from an 8/8/17 episode of Trish Talks**

 

 _Walker:_ Welcome to Monday’s episode of Trish Talks! It’s been a crazy weekend for me. Friday night was the premiere of my first movie, _Macbeth_ , where I play Lady Macbeth. I had such a lovely time filming with my Macbeth, James Barnes. Lemme tell you, JBB fans. He really is as wonderful in person as he is in interviews. You’d love him if you went him. And, of course, working with director Taika Waititi was a dream; he is such an amazing and witty man and was always making me laugh on set. _Macbeth_ is in theaters now, so go and see it if you like Shakespeare. Or even if you don’t like Shakespeare. Now, moving on to our first guest of today’s show. His tweets about the vigilante Nomad launched the city into a firestorm of a discussions about how we really define a vigilante and their morality. We have J. Jonah Jameson, editor of New York’s _Daily Bugle_ , in the studio today. Welcome, Jonah!

 _Jameson:_ [coughs] Great to be here, Patricia.

 _Walker:_ Oh, it’s just Trish.

 _Jameson:_ Of course. I met your mother at a few different events; she was a lovely woman.

 _Walker:_ [laughs awkwardly] I’m sure she was. Now, Mr. Jameson, can you tell us what lead to your, admittedly, controversial tweet?

 _Jameson:_ Seeing that son of a bitch Nomad trending angered me. That’s a man literally and liberally breaking the laws of this fine city and dishonoring the Sokovian Accords, and people are celebrating him. That SOB should be captured and arrested. Maybe even shot on sight.

 _Walker:_ Isn’t that a bit extreme. Mr. Jameson? Nomad has been saving lives and stopping crimes.

 _Jameson:_ If anything, he’s patrolling the streets like he owns the city. He’s putting innocent lives in danger and making it harder for the police to do their job. Assholes like him need to be put in check. That’s why the Sokovian Accords exist. To keep us safe and keep the Avengers from going astray.

 _Walker:_ Looks like we have our first caller! Good morning, you’re listening to Trish Talks. Who am I speaking to? Do you have anything to say to Mr. Jonah Jameson?

 _Page:_ My name is Karen Page, and I’m a journalist from the _New York Bulletin_. I disagree with Mr. Jameson; I believe that the Sokovian Accords are actually hurting us by limiting the Avengers’ powers. They’ve been made practically useless. We need vigilantes like Nomad when the Avengers can’t help us. I believe Mr. Jameson is talking out of his ass. He can’t truly believe that Nomad isn’t a hero. He’s a citizen stepping up and doing his duty to keep the city safe.

 _Jameson:_ Why you little-

 _Walker:_ [swiftly] That’s an interesting perspective, Karen. We’ll continue this debate after the break. Nomad, hero or danger? Just who are vigilantes in this post-Sokovian Accords age? And, later, we’ll discuss the upcoming Howling Commandos movie. Is it time for a new Cap-focused movie after Spielberg’s disastrous _Captain America: Patriot for Justice_? All this after the break, so stay tuned in to Trish Talks.

* * *

 

queentrishwalker

 

 

> how awkward was that jonahhh jamissan interview? he really is a pos. but watching karen shit on him was fucking amazing. i’m here for this

#trish walker #trish talks #karen page

 

nycdream

 

 

> New York has another vigilante…and he calls himself the Winter Soldier???

#i’m been hearing stories around brooklyn #people have been seeing both him and nomad #okay #the winter soldier

 

falconrox

 

 

> i think i met the winter soldier? last week i was being followed by someone and this guy in black and a domino mask scared them off
> 
> i thought it was nomad but i guess not

#it’s weird #dangers of living in new york #vigilantes #new york #nomad #the winter soldier

 

* * *

 

**TRENDING: NY’s newest vigilante calls himself…the Winter Soldier?**

**TRENDING: Jonah Jameson’s unsuccessful interview on _Trish Talks_ will make you cringe**

**TRENDING: Trish dishes on hottie co-star James Barnes. Are they dating?**

**TRENDING: _Howling Commandos_ movie in works at Netflix. What should we expect? Who could the director be? Who will they cast as Captain America and his Commandos?**

**TRENDING: British actress Hayley Atwell reportedly in talks to play Agent Carter.**

 

* * *

 

 **Jonah Jameson** @jjjamesonofthedailybugle

Read the Daily Bulletin for low-quality reporting.

 

 **Karen Page** @karenpageturner

At least we print something of readable quality @jjjamesonofthedailybugle

 

 **James B. Barnes** @officialjamesbbarnes

Always so sweet and kind about me @RealTrishWalker. I love listening to @TrishTalks.

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

You’re such a charmer, Barnes. @officialjamesbbarnes

 

 **barnesfan** @numerouno

@RealTrishWalker are you dating @officialjamesbbarnes? you’re so cute together.

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

@numerouno Thank you, but I am not dating James. I have found someone who’s just slightly better-looking than @officialjamesbbarnes. I’m talking about you @jjones. Love you, babe.

 

 **Howling Commandos** @howlingcommandosnetflix

Netflix is proud to announce that _Howling Commandos_ ’ director as @TaikaWaititi. The first Howling Commando to be cast is SSR Agent Margaret “Peggy” Carter, later the first director of SHIELD. She is to be played by British actress Hayley Atwell.

 

* * *

 

**TRENDING: Taika Waititi discusses who could play Dum Dum Dugan and the other Commandos in his new movie and hints at who he’s searching for to play Cap.**

**BREAKING: According to Taika Waititi, “Cap will not be the focus of the movie.” The Howling Commandos may finally be getting their due.**

**BREAKING: Did actress and radio host Trish Walker just hint at a romantic relationship with best friend Jessica Jones?**

 

**TRENDING: What did Sharon Carter and the rest of the Howling descendants have to say about the movie? And why is Cap keeping silent?**

 

* * *

 

**FIFTEEN HOLLYWOOD HOTTIES WHO CAN PLAY REAL LIFE DREAMBOAT CAPTAIN STEVE ROGERS**

James Barnes is the hottest brunet we know but he’ll look better in stars and stripes

 

* * *

 

The little silver bell hanging in the diner’s entrance jingles quietly as Steve pushes the door open slowly, but, only a few hours past midnight, the diner is littered with only a few souls, so no one turns to look at Captain America out in public.

Steve’s a usual here, and the staff all know him. When he greets the waitress at the front counter, she waves and asks, “Couldn’t sleep?”

“Not without a slice of the diner’s pie, Kate,” he replies, smiling kindly.

Kate Bishop, a sharp-eyed college student, is Clint’s protégé and lives out in Brooklyn in the apartment building he maintains. Disowned by her rich father for reasons that she’s never disclosed, at least to Steve, she lived homeless on the streets for about a year before Clint found her and took her under his wing. Now, Kate takes shifts at the diner to pay for her studies at Brooklyn College after having fervently refused Clint’s money.

At Steve’s comment, she snorts. “I’ll bring you your usual in a few,” she tells him, tucking stray hairs behind her ear.

“How’s school?” he asks conversationally.

Kate sighs. “I’m trying to decide between majors,” she admits. “Clint says I should stick with business management, my current major, but I’m thinking of going into economics or accounting instead. What do you think, Steve?”

“I never finished my college education,” Steve says truthfully, “but my excuse was basically World War II. Still, I went in to study art, something I truly loved. So, I believe that the choice is what you think would be best for you.”

She nods, looking thoughtful at Steve’s reply. “That’s definitely true.” She chews her bottom lip slightly. “I guess I’ll have to make a pro-con list or something like that. Thanks, Steve.”

“Good luck,” he calls after Kate as she disappears into the kitchen. Then he glances around the diner, searching for an empty booth, and his eyes fall on a familiar figure hunched over a table. “Didn’t expect to see you here,” he calls teasingly as he approaches.

“What?” James Barnes glances up with bleary eyes that had previously been focused on a laptop screen, but, as his gaze settles onto Steve, he becomes visibly alert. “Oh, hey,” he says in a friendly tone. His lips curve into a genuine smile, and Steve can feel his cheeks redden slightly.

“Do you mind?” Steve asks, gesturing to the booth.

“Go ahead,” James replies with a permissive nod of his head. As Steve slides into the vinyl seat opposite him, he shuts his laptop, almost a bit abruptly, and slips it onto the seat beside him. He smiles again. “What are you doing here so early?”

“I,” Steve begins hesitantly, sneaking a quick peek at the mostly dark sky through the diner’s windows. “I couldn’t sleep.”

That was an understatement. It had been one of his worst nights in months; he had woken up from a nightmare where he was back in the lab in Brooklyn, immediately after his transformation, and HYDRA gunmen were holding everyone he’d ever loved at gunpoint: his mother, Peggy and the Commandos, and the Avengers. Then, his nightmare had shifted until he was on the _Valkyrie_ and watching the water flood into the plane all over again.

Steve swallows roughly, aware of James’ kind eyes on him. “What about you?” he asks, changing the subject. “What’s your reason for being in a diner in Brooklyn before dawn?”

“Nostalgia,” James tells him simply before explaining. “My mom worked here when I was younger. We weren’t quite well-off, and my dad died overseas a few years after I was born. So I spent most of my teenage years here, and my sister Becca was practically raised here. I liked to come here and read scripts for prospective roles that my agent sends me when I can’t sleep.”

Nodding in understanding, Steve taps lightly on the counter. “Brooklyn born and raised?” he inquires and watches James nod.

“You two are like the most famous people to come out of Brooklyn like ever,” Kate comments as she materializes next to James with a mug of coffee and a plate of blueberry pie for Steve. “Everyone loves talking about Captain America or the Barnes boy here, especially in the diner.”

James ducks his head, blushing brightly as he grins boyishly, and, in this moment, Steve wants nothing more than to gather this man in his arms and kiss him senseless, but he doesn’t.

Instead, he turns to Kate and thanks her.

“Just doing my job,” she tells him with a laugh. “I’m clocking out soon, so Nina will be able to help you if you need anything else, Steve. While I’m here though, you want a refill on that coffee, Bucky?” Kate gestures to the empty mug next to James’ right hand.

“Nah, I think I’m good on the caffeine for today, Katie-Kate. Tell Clint I say hi,” James states, stretching his neck slowly from one side to another. He releases a quiet groan of pleasure, and Steve pretends that that little noise didn’t send a spark up his spine and warmth flooding into the pit of his stomach.

“Cool.” Kate nods before disappearing again, but not before shooting a mischievous look at Steve and catching his returning joking frown.

“She’s a sweet kid,” Steve comments and watches James nod in agreement. “How do you know Clint?” he asks curiously as he goes to take a sip of his coffee.

James chuckles. “I found him injured in dumpsters behind my apartment building enough times that he stuck to me. That was when he was a still a SHIELD agent, about a decade ago, and quite early in my career.”

“Sounds like Clint,” Steve says, laughter in his voice. He raises his mug back to his lips and slowly drains it.

“Yeah, it does,” James agrees.

They lock gazes, cornflower blue clashing with glacier grey, before cracking up in laughter.

“There’s no one else like Clint,” James says breathlessly as they calm down. “All things considered, he’s a good guy. Will have your back when you don’t expect it.”

Steve picks up his fork and flips it around a few times distractedly before neatly slicing a bite of pie with its edge and shoveling it into his mouth. He swallows and sighs in appreciation.

“I’m sorry,” James comments in amusement. “Should I leave you alone? Sounds like you were really enjoying that pie.”

Blushing at the insinuation, Steve shakes his head. “It’s one of the few things that’s remained the same since before,” he states quietly. “My ma brought me here all the time before she died. The pie still tastes exactly the way it used to.”

James quiets a little, his expression becoming sympathetic, and Steve smiles sadly. “Once I tried to wrangle the recipe out of Kate,” James tells him after a pause, “but she told me that it’s a diner secret and is literally taken to the grave.”

Steve chuckles, his shoulders relaxing slightly. “None of the waitresses would tell me either.”

They fall into a comfortable conversation after that, flowing naturally from topic to topic. Before long, the sky lightens as the sun rises, and, the next time Steve glances out the window, there are joggers and mothers pushing strollers outside. More diner patrons have wandered inside, and more gazes have wandered curiously to Steve and James’ booth.

Suddenly, James’ phone chimes with a text, and he pulls it from his sweatshirt pocket to glance at the screen. “Oops,” he announces. “That’s my sister. I promised to meet her. I should go.” He peeks at the door and then stares at Steve with an open expression of longing, his head tilting back.

Steve openly admires the powerful curve of James’ neck as the man smiles knowingly at him.

“I have to know,” Steve says abruptly, and James raises a curious eyebrow. “Who’s Bucky?”

“No!” James groans in reply, his upper body slumping forward onto the table. He whines, and Steve chuckles. When James glances up, his entire face is red. “Damnit, Kate.”

“Now, I need to know,” Steve declares mischievously.

“Bucky’s my nickname. It comes from my middle name, which is Buchanan. I don’t know what my parents were thinking, naming their son after the worst president in United States history,” James says, still blushing.

“He’s not the worst president,” Steve reasons but cracks a smile at James’ unimpressed glare. “So, can I call you Bucky?”

“I tried to get people to stop calling me that after high school, but my sister persisted in trying to embarrass me by telling everyone. So only Clint, Becca, Becca’s girlfriend Daisy, and a few other friends call me that, but go ahead,” James says with a sigh.

“Alright,” Steve replies, “Bucky.”

The newly-christened Bucky groans. “I’m so going to regret telling you that.”

“You will,” Steve tells him.

Bucky’s phone chimes again. “I’m sorry. I gotta go. See you around?” he asks hopefully, eyes earnest.

Steve nods. “Definitely.”

Bucky flashes him a dazzling smile before slipping from the table.

* * *

 

**TRENDING: Were Cap and actor James Barnes at a Brooklyn diner early today morning? Scroll through the slideshow of pictures HERE.**

**TRENDING: Trish Walker confirms romantic relationship with best friend Jessica Jones. “I’m tired of people pretending I’m not in a relationship because I’m with Jessica. It’s 2017, I like girls and guys. Get over it,” the _Macbeth_ star says. “Jessica was the first person I ever loved and the person I’ll always love the most.”**

**BREAKING: _The Wolf of Wall Street_ star Kenneth Choi cast as James Morita, the famous Japanese-American Howling Commando, in Taika Waititi’s _Howling Commandos_.**

 

* * *

 

stamesforever

 

 

> i can’t believe that james and steve were at a diner at 3-fucking-am in the morning. and the way they were looking at each other! THAT! CAN’T! BE! PLATONIC!

#stames #i love them #I LOVE THEM #the way they look at each other makes me melt #they are so cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

jaimesbarnes

 

 

> hotandbotheredforrogers
> 
> I want someone to look at me the way steve rogers and james barnes look at each other.

#same #they are the cutest in the world #these boys #they will kill me

 

queentrishwalker

 

 

> honestly, trish walker is a bi!icon (a bicon) and no one can tell me otherwise. god, i fucking love her.

#trish walker #jessica jones #bicon #look at my baby #taking a stand

 

Anonymous: what did trish walker say or do?

queentrishwalker: She implied that she was dating her best friend on Twitter a few days ago and formally came out on today’s Trish Talks episode. She said that she’s bi, and her best friend, and girlfriend, Jessica Jones is the love of her life.

#trish walker #ask

 

theyowlingcommandos

 

 

> I’m a bit disappointed in Taika Waititi. He’s amazing, but James Morita was Japanese-American, and they cast a Korean-American actor to play him??? all of us asians don’t all look alike

#my identity is not interchangeable #taika waititi

 

* * *

 

1 – 65 of 125 Works in James Barnes/Steve Rogers

 

* * *

 

Steve’s sitting on the roof of Goldie’s, a gym popular when he was young but that now falling into ruin, and staring at the bright city lights when someone approaches from behind. “Find anything, Soldier?” he asks without turning.

The Winter Soldier laughs huskily, sending a shiver down Steve’s spine. “You are straight to the point, aren’t you? Yeah, I found something.”

Steve rolls his eyes. “Which is?”

“I cornered a HYDRA lackey last night,” he tells Steve. “The guy broke pretty easily, but he obviously didn’t know much of value, although he told me a location. It’s on the far edge of Brooklyn but pretty close to here.”

“Lead me there then,” Steve says and watches the Soldier slowly smile.

“Of course, my dear Nomad,” he replies, stretching out the syllables of Steve’s alias in a voice as smooth as silk. “If you would just.” He motions for Steve to move, and the blond steps aside and tries to avert his eyes from the Soldier’s delectable, spandex-clad ass.

It doesn’t work.

The Soldier follows Steve’s gaze and then flashes him a cocky, wicked smirk that causes heat to pool at the pit of his stomach and his mouth to drop open slightly. Then the Soldier laughs roughly before taking a running start and leaping to the next rooftop, picking up speed as he peels away from Steve.

After a moment’s pause, Steve follows in pursuit, racing from rooftop to rooftop until he finally catches up to the Soldier who has come to an abrupt halt on a rooftop across from an abandoned storefront.

“This it?” Steve asks with a sharp jerk of his head to indicate the storefront.

“Yeah,” says the Soldier.

“Do you know how many men are inside?” Steve questions, assessing the building for entry and exit points.

“At least twenty,” the Soldier tells him. “The front door is the only entrance but is also rigged with motion sensors. So, a surprise attack is out of question.”

“This place is better-guarded than the last,” Steve observes.

The Soldier nods. “It’s obviously also higher priority to HYDRA, so we might actually find something of value here.”

They devise a quick plan of attack. With a supersoldier and whatever the Winter Soldier is, clearing this place should not be too difficult.

Before implementing their plan, Steve has one last question for the Soldier. “How great of a shot are you?” he asks.

The Soldier shrugs causally. “I can hold my own,” he says. “Why?”

Instead of responding, Steve slides one of the guns from his belt and tosses it to the Soldier. “For you,” he explains simply. When the Soldier stares at the gun in disbelief before fixing Steve with an aghast expression, Steve rolls his eyes. “Relax,” he says as he ejects the magazine from a similar gun that he also pulls from the belt. “It’s a stun-gun. Full of tranquilizer bullets.” He tilts the magazine towards the Soldier to reveal blue, vividly-glowing bullets. “It’s called an ICER. Knocks out hostiles immediately. Each gun holds twelve rounds. When you run out, I’ve also got these.” He fishes out a handful of grenades from his belt and tosses them to the ground. “ICER grenades. Don’t ask how they work; I can’t exactly tell you that. Just pull out the pin and clear out before it flashes blue.”

The ICERs and grenades are supplied by Tony, but they were developed by Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons, former SHIELD agents who now are part of Stark Industries’ R&D team. They’re brilliant, enough that Tony wishes he recruited them before they went through the SHIELD academy.

Swallowing audibly, the Soldier curls his hand around the gun. “I thought my own fists were good enough,” he jokes weakly.

“Look,” Steve says, sighing. “I don’t condone lethal weapons, but these,” he shakes the gun in his hand for emphasis, “are not lethal and are, frankly, the most efficient way. And, this is HYDRA we’re talking about. The Howling Commandos barely defeated them during the war, and it’s looking more likely that they actually didn’t. We don’t know what to expect. You agreed to do this my way.” He pauses. “This is my way, and I don’t take shortcuts.”

“Fine,” the Soldier agrees with a bit more vigor. He slips the gun into the waistband of his pants and scoops up some grenades and pockets them. “Let’s do this.”

A quick throw of a rock is enough to trip the building’s rudimentary motion sensors. When a HYDRA operative exits to investigate the disturbance, he’s met with a sassy “Howdy” from the Soldier before the butt of the gun is smashed across his head, and he crumples to the ground, unconscious.

“What?” the Soldier says cheerfully in response to Steve’s questioning eyebrow raise. “You said to use the gun. I am. Using the gun.” He waves it in the air, and Steve snorts before ducking through the doorway, the Soldier following closely.

They clear the first hallway, finding it empty, before arriving in front of a set of doors. The Soldier presses his ear to each and shakes his head. _Empty_ , he mouths at Steve. Finally, he leans into the last door, cocking his head before turning to stare at Steve. _At least four_ , he mouths again.

Steve nods, gesturing for the Soldier to move away. He reaches for the doorknob and twists it slowly. As he pushes it open, he rolls into the room, rapidly shooting each of the four startled men in the chest with the ICER. They slump backwards in their chairs as he springs back to his feet.

A sudden slow clap has him startling and snapping his head to the right as the Soldier makes his way into the room. “Bravo,” he says sarcastically, and Steve ignores him.

They continue, but someone must have taken note of their attack. The moment Steve steps into the next hallway, he dives to the side to avoid a bullet that lodges into the wall behind him. The Soldier just points his gun calmly and hits the shooter point-blank on the forehead. The Soldier fires again and again, back-flipping gracefully and dodging bullets almost languidly. When the gun clicks empty, the Soldier flips it into the air, smoothly grabs it by the muzzle, whips it across the face of a nearby HYDRA operative, and watches him go down.

Steve follows suit, taking out the remaining two men in the hallway with hasty shots. When the chaos settles, he fixes the Soldier with an astonished stare. “I thought you said you were decent. That was more like you were born with a rifle in hand.”

The Soldier shrugs. “So I downplayed my level of skill. Let’s go,” he says, ushering Steve with obvious impatience.

They barge into another room, and the Soldier descends on them like a predator, using his gun as a bludgeon until it grows slippery with blood. Then, he slips it back into his waistband and settles for grappling the men and tossing them into walls.

Steve elbows his own adversary in the gut, brings his knee up between another’s legs, and backflips to avoid a stray punch. He slips up for a moment and catches a blow on his solar plexus, but, as he doubles over, he manages to hook his arms around a nearby man’s legs and pulls him down to the ground. Quick on his feet, Steve stands and presses his ICER to the closest attacker’s back and pulls the trigger. When all the men are down, groaning or unconscious, he straightens, panting, and smiles breathlessly at the Winter Soldier whose own returning smile is wolfish.

The next hallway is cleared with relative ease until Steve runs out of bullets and settles for hand-to-hand combat.

He misses the feel of his shield beneath his fingertips, flinging it and watching it return. These vigilante runs are not the same as missions with the Avengers, and, though Steve fights side-by-side with the Soldier as he has never before, not even with any of the Commandos or Natasha or Tony, there is a certain frenzy of adrenaline missing. This is almost child’s play.

They reach a final door, one that likely lead into a large office based on the layout of the building, and Steve twists the door open.

Several men turn to glance at him in bewilderment, and, before their expressions harden and they reach for weapons, he says, “Oops. I guess this wasn’t the bathroom.” As the Soldier chuckles, Steve pulls the pin of an ICER grenade and rolls it inside, drawing the door shut quickly.

There is a bright flash of blue light emerging from the doorway, and then there’s several thumps as bodies hit the ground. The Soldier reopens the door and stops just past the threshold. “Is it me, or is this HYDRA entirely incompetent?” he asks. “They don’t even seem to train their men.”

“Or, maybe, we’re just that good,” Steve voices distractedly, glancing down at the incomplete map on the table that the men had been observing. “This looks like a map of operations for HYDRA, at least for Brooklyn. See, there’s the warehouse we took out earlier; it’s been crossed out. Besides this one, there’s about one or two more, plus a few in the Bronx.”

“Looks like we’ve got our schedules set for the next few days,” the Soldier announces. “Maybe one of them will actually give us a name or something to work off next time.”

“Maybe they will,” Steve agrees grimly.

 

* * *

 

 **James B. Barnes** @officialjamesbbarnes

Proud to announce that I will be playing Captain Steve Rogers in _Howling Commandos_ , dir. By @TaikaWaititi! Hope I can make you proud, Steve, @officialcaprogers.


	2. the sky's the limit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with the second part! The next one's gonna be posted next Saturday in time for Buck's birthday. 
> 
> Keep an eye out through this one for some familiar character cameos, and lemme know in the comments who you liked best.

**FROM _THE COVENANT_ TO THE CAPTAIN: JAMES BARNES MAY HAVE JUST GOTTEN HIS BIGGEST BREAK YET**

Despite making waves with his performance as the titular character in Taika Waititi’s _Macbeth_ , the Brooklyn-born actor is still mostly obscure in the glitzy and golden world of awards and film critics.

Read more

 

* * *

 

**Bucky**

Hey. It’s Bucky.

 

**Bucky**

I got your number from Clint.

 

**Bucky**

You’ve probably heard the news by now, and I hope it’s not awkward that I was cast to play you.

 

**Steve**

What news?

 

**Bucky**

…

 

**Steve**

Just kidding. No, it’s not terribly awkward. Yes, of course, it will be strange to see someone playing me on-screen, but Mr. Waititi has assured me that the movie will focus on the Howlies as a team and that special prominence will be given to Jim and Gabe. Besides, if there’s anyone I don’t mind playing me on the big screen, it’s you.

 

**Bucky**

God, the history books really don’t tell you that Steve Rogers is such as asshole.

 

**Steve**

But those history books aren’t about me; they’re about Captain America.

 

**Bucky**

That’s true. And, of course, it will be better for me to get my research from somewhere other than those history books. Somewhere like the actual man himself, if he wouldn’t mind?

 

**Steve**

It would be my pleasure. When?

 

**Bucky**

We don’t start filming for a few weeks, so we could meet a few times before then. Does Saturday work for you?

 

**Steve**

It will unless Tony convinces me come to another movie premiere like he did for _Macbeth_.

 

**Bucky**

I’m glad he did!

 

**Steve**

What time on Saturday?

 

**Bucky**

Afternoon or evening, any time works for me.

 

**Steve**

I guess I’ll see you on Saturday at four.

 

* * *

 

Bucky paces incessantly, nearly burning a hole through the smooth hardwood floor of his apartment, and, when the doorbell chimes, he flings the door open with a bit more force than necessary.

Steve Rogers stands before him, wringing those long, artistic fingers together. His gorgeous eyes fly up to meet Bucky’s in surprise. “Hey,” he says casually.

Eyes sliding over the blue button-down stretched indecently over Steve’s impressive chest, Bucky presses his lips together and smiles politely, using all the willpower he possesses to not blurt out something inappropriate. “Come on in,” he says, stepping aside to allow Steve entry into his apartment. “You can leave your shoes by the door.”

“Thanks,” Steve says with his usual charming smile.

“Go ahead into the living room and sit anywhere you want. I’m just gonna shut the door before I join you.”

With a nod of acknowledgement, Steve disappears from the hallway, and Bucky turns to bolt the door. He checks the lock and then briefly leans his forehead against the cool wood of the door. He bites his lower lip and finally releases the quiet whimper he had stifled at the sight of Steve.

It’s as if the man gets more and more attractive every time Bucky sees him. He was jaw-dropping on the red carpet. And, in the diner, even with the dark smudges of sleeplessness under his eyes, Steve had drawn Bucky’s gaze like he was pure sunshine.

When Bucky finally wanders into his living room, Steve is perched on a dove-gray armchair that faces Bucky’s gleaming kitchen and is admiring the paintings on the opposite wall. “Your apartment is very beautiful,” he tells Bucky. “You have a great eye for color.”

Bucky snorts. “That’s great praise,” he states with a quiet chuckle, “but it’s directed to the wrong person. My sister Becca and her fiancée did all the decorating. They even came apartment-hunting with me.”

Steve hums, his eyes wandering around before finally falling on a framed picture of a girl on a side table. “Is that her?” he asks curiously.

Nodding, Bucky hands him the frame. “That’s her and Daisy.”

“She looks just like you,” Steve observes softly. “You must really love her.”

Bucky hums in agreement. “Becca’s got the Barnes eyes and the Barnes chin and the Barnes nose. Just traded the Barnes stubbornness for common sense, but Daisy brings that to the table.” He raps his knuckles lightly against the wall. “They’re getting married this April. Just a small ceremony and some friends since neither us nor Daisy have any folks left.” He sighs. “She and Daisy have that kind of love that you think that only your mom and dad could have. I love my sister to death, but you can’t help but envy that.”

To Bucky’s surprise, Steve’s expression is one of understanding. “When I was a kid, I thought my ma and pa were true love. She loved him so much that she never remarried after he died, despite how young she still was,” he explains.

“Right,” Bucky says. He swallows quietly, taking the frame that Steve hands back to him and setting it down on the table.

After a pause, Steve asks, “How do you want to do this?”

Bucky grins. “I don’t think I can glean your entire life story in a few hours. I’d rather just get a sense of who you were then and who you are now.” He tilts his head from side-to-side, stretching his neck out, groaning quietly at the relief and knowing that Steve’s eyes are on him. “Do you want anything before we get started? Juice, beer, water?”

“No, thank you,” Steve says politely, eyes still fixed on the graceful line of Bucky’s neck, and Bucky smirks a little bit, preening because he knows that he’s attractive.

For all his redeeming qualities, Bucky is a bit vain, and he knows it.

He sinks down into the armchair opposite Steve’s, crossing his legs and leaning back. “So, what was Steve Rogers’ favorite book?”

“Then, it was _The Hobbit_ ,” Steve states. “Now, it’s a wide variety. _Harry Potter_. _Never Let Me Go._ I also liked _The Chronicles of Narnia_ , and Tony introduced me to Stephen King.”

“I’ve never actually read Tolkien,” Bucky replies thoughtfully, “but I have a particular liking for _Brave New World_ and other dystopias or science-fiction. Of course, both Becca and I went crazy over _Harry Potter_. I’m apparently a Slytherin, according to her and Daisy.”

“Tony and Natasha claim that I’m a Gryffindor,” Steve offers, eyes twinkling.

Bucky chuckles. “I can see that…Favorite subject in school?”

“None of them,” Steve replies, snickering like the asshole he is at Bucky’s expression of bewilderment. “I was loud-mouthed and outspoken and always fighting with teachers and bullies. I was a nightmare student. Couple that with my asthma and my heart murmur,” he shrugs, “and, at one point, I missed enough days that I had to be held back a year. School wasn’t easy for me.” He asks mischievously, “What about you?”

“I was a model student,” Bucky replies primly. “I was on the varsity soccer team, took every AP known to mankind, and was just one B short of becoming valedictorian. I was also in every play my school put on. But, enough about me. You’re the interviewee here.”

Steve smirks, and Bucky’s cheeks go red as his heart flutters with warmth.

He swallows roughly. “Favorite childhood memory?”

Steve’s answer is immediate. “I drew my ma a sketch of my dad based on a picture of their wedding day. She teared up seeing it and put it in the locket she wore around her neck with her wedding ring.”

Bucky is distracted by the softness in Steve’s expression when he asks his next question. Steve’s reply is just as enthusiastic as his last, and Bucky finds himself watching Steve gesture passionately or his nose wrinkles adorably. Their conversation stretches for a while, never petering out.

Then, in a stroke of what he considers brilliance, Bucky asks about Steve’s first kiss.

“My first kiss?” Steve repeats, eyebrows lifting knowingly. “Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t one of the USO showgirls. My first kiss was in behind my school with Arnie Roth when I was thirteen. My first steady girlfriend was Bernie Rosenthal from art class.”

Bucky smiles giddily, feeling the same butterflies in his stomach as he did when he first saw Steve. “Mine was a girl in my science class in high school, but my first make out session was with a guy named Matt when I went to a party in Hell’s Kitchen.”

Steve’s looking at him curiously now. “How did you make it to Hell’s Kitchen?”

“It was an after-party for the inter-city debate tournaments. My team made it all the way to the final two, but we lost to a Manhattan high school,” Bucky admits, blushing. “I told you I was a model student.”

“I’m sure you were,” Steve replies in a tone that causes Bucky’s throat to feel dry.

He coughs and then announces suddenly, “I need some water. Do you need anything?”

“I’m fine,” Steve responds quietly, watching Bucky rise and stumble to the kitchen.

Bucky takes a glass from a cabinet and fills it with water before draining it and dropping the glass onto his kitchen island. His eyes flicker shut for just a moment while he makes a quick decision. Then they fly open, and he returns to his living room with purpose.

“Stop me if you don’t want this,” he tells a bewildered Steve, taking the other man’s hand and leading him to the couch pressed against a wall. He takes a seat, pulling Steve down to sit besides him, before angling his upper body to face Steve.

Curling a tender hand around Steve’s chin, Bucky leans in and captures Steve’s mouth in a sweet but all too brief kiss. Then, he scoots back to give Steve some space and breathes in and out, scrutinizing Steve’s reaction.

Bucky’s left optimistic by the fact that Steve didn’t protest, and his hope is proven true when Steve smiles softly before pressing his lips back to Bucky’s.

They kiss gently for minutes that stretch by like syrup, at least to Bucky’s own distracted awareness, but, somehow, Bucky’s tongue finds a way into the warm, wet cavern of Steve’s mouth, and it turns dirty as Steve nips at Bucky’s lip.

They separate breathlessly, chest heaving, as Bucky fixes Steve with shadowed eyes and lunges forward, shoving Steve to lie down against the couch and straddling his waist. “This is not how I intended today to go,” Bucky admits before kissing Steve hungrily. “But this is good.”

Steve cups the back of Bucky’s neck with a gentle hand before breaking the kiss off, making Bucky pout and lean in closer. “Plans often have a way of going awry,” Steve says cryptically.

Bucky freezes before bursting into giggles, collapsing against Steve’s chest. He raises his head, accidentally catching Steve’s eye, and then Steve is also giggling.

The moment has passed by the time both men straighten, leaning breathlessly against the couch’s throw pillows but for an entirely different reason this time.

“I should go,” Steve announces abruptly, causing Bucky to turn and glance at him in astonishment. Catching a glimpse of Bucky’s expression, Steve shakes his head, rushing to assure the other man. “No, no. It’s not that I regret this. It’s just…” He sighs. “If I stay, we won’t stop and that’ll lead to something which it may be too early for.”

Bucky slumps his shoulders, but he nods in understanding, smiling at Steve. “Alright.” He bites his lips, throwing a quick but not unmissed glance at Steve’s lips with longing. “Lemme show you to the door.”

Steve rises and exits the living room, and Bucky follows, eyes glued to Steve’s attractive ass the entire way to the door.

After Steve slips on his shoes, Bucky wraps an arm around Steve’s waist and pulls him in for a dirty kiss before releasing his mouth. Steve’s eyes are clearly glazed, but his pupils eventually slide back into focus, and he smiles apologetically at Bucky.

“See you later?” he offers hopefully.

“Definitely,” Bucky replies as Steve steps out the door, shoving it shut behind him with a sigh.

 

* * *

 

**Bucky**

Becca! Becca! Becca, Becca, Becca!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

**Becca**

What???

 

**Bucky**

I kissed Steve!

 

**Becca**

!!!!!! Did he kiss you back?

 

**Bucky**

We sorta made out???

 

**Becca**

Did it lead anywhere?

 

**Bucky**

….No. Not that I didn’t try. He just wants to take it slow. Which is fine too.

 

**Becca**

Ya know, the last girl who wanted to take it slow with me ended up proposing. Who knows, Steve may just be your Daisy. Imagine it; we’re both going to be such power couples.

 

**Becca**

Bucky???

 

**Becca**

Buck? Bucky bear???

 

**Becca**

James Buchanan Barnes????

 

**Bucky**

I’m blocking you.

 

* * *

 

**SPOTTED: Captain Steve Rogers looks delectable as he scrolls through Brooklyn in this tight-fitting blue button-down**

 

* * *

 

hotandbotheredforrogers

> it looks like that shirt is going to rip right off cap’s chest any moment if he flexes his muscles wrong

#that shirt needs to rip #for the sake of liberty and justice in america

 

stamesforever

> doesn’t james barnes live somewhere in that neighborhood?

#who was steve visiting #just saying #that shirt screams fuck me #stames

 

dipshitsandcandlesticks

> steve can bend me over a desk anytime if he keeps wearing that shirt

#ignore me

 

* * *

 

“Well,” Bucky announces as he roundhouse-kicks his final opponent into unconsciousness and straightens, watching Nomad dust off his gloves. “These last few nights may have been a bust. These locations didn’t yield anything useful.”

“We did demolish four different drug operations,” Nomad offers. Bucky imagines that, if he could see the man’s eyebrows, they’d be raised.

“Sure, but we don’t have any information that could bring HYDRA down permanently,” Bucky replies.

Nomad sighs, turning to rifle through a stack of files on the desk besides him, and Bucky’s eyes wander to the other man’s ass, tight enough that he wanted to bounce a quarter off of it and, oh, so oddly familiar.

Movement from the hallway draws Bucky’s attention, and he cocks his head, superhuman ears listening intently. “We’ve got a visitor,” he tells Nomad softly, who rolls his eyes but still presses himself into a corner, hidden from immediate view. Bucky wedges himself against a filing cabinet adjacent to the door.

When the door slides open and a man drifts into view, Bucky pounces, knocking the surprise entry against the desk and then leaning over imposingly to force his forearm against the man’s neck.

The man groans in surprise, bucking up in an attempt to loosen Bucky’s grip, but Bucky shoves his head to the side to make eye contact, watching the man’s eyes widen and his mouth stretch open as he begins whimpering heavily. Bucky glances behind him and realizes that Nomad is looming over him, the sleek body of an ICER pressed to the side of the man’s head.

To any unsuspecting person, the ICER would resemble a handgun, and Bucky suddenly understands the man’s fear.

“My friend over here is going to release you in a moment,” Nomad growls threateningly. “I want you to tell us the most powerful person you know in HYDRA in ten seconds, or I’ll pull the trigger.”

The man whimpers again and attempts to shake his head despite Bucky’s death-grip on his throat.

“Do you understand?” Nomad barks, and the hairs on the back of Bucky’s neck stand up at his tone.

The man nods quickly, and Nomad moves the ICER to aim it straight at the man’s temple, nodding to Bucky, who releases his grip. The man falls back against the desk, scrabbling for a grip as his eyes dart between Nomad and the gun.

“One Mississippi,” Nomad sing-songs, “two Mississippi.”

“The clock’s ticking,” Bucky adds, glad for the voice modulator device built into the collar of his armor. The best thing about having an ex-SHIELD agent for a future sister-in-law is that she’ll bring you tech when you need it, no questions asked. “I’d tell us the name. Save your own life.”

“I don’t even know what HYDRA is,” the man admits hurriedly, and he flinches when Nomad’s fingers tighten around the ICER’s trigger. “But Grant Ward runs the operations around New York.”

Bucky takes a visible step back, mouth curving into a frown.

There’s a gunshot and a flash of blue light, and then the man slides against the desk and slumps to the floor. Nomad slips the ICER back into his holster, turning to Bucky in urgency. “You know Grant Ward?” he demands.

“I may have heard the name before,” Bucky says with a grimace, but his fingers curls into a fist against his upper thigh. “I’ll handle this.”

“Are you sure?” Nomad asks, his tone oddly one of concern.

“Aww,” Bucky croons immediately, flirting back on instinct, “are you worried for me, Nomad?”

“Excuse me for giving a shit about the guy I work with,” Nomad grumbles, crossing his arms across the broad chest that Bucky loves appreciating.

Bucky chuckles. “I guess we’ll be calling it a night.” He glances quickly towards the window, and, when he turns back around, Nomad has disappeared out of the office like a quiet ghost. Bucky can hear him darting down the stairs and out the door.

Bucky waits a moment before slipping out of the building himself. The police should be on their way, and he doesn’t want to be waiting around when they arrive, so he scrabbles up the side of a building and hops from rooftop to rooftop until he’s a few blocks away.

He spots a payphone at the end of an alley and drops down besides it, crowding into the booth and pulling the door shut behind him. He fishes quarters from the invisible pocket on the side of his uniform pants and feeds them to the machine before dialing his wanted number and waiting for the line to ring. “Hey, Daisy,” he says brightly as his sister’s fiancée picks up.

“ _Hey, Buck_ ,” Daisy parrots back at him. “ _You looking to talk to Becca?_ ”

“Nah.” Bucky shifts to lean against the glass wall of the booth. “You still keep tabs on Ward, right?”

Two hours later, Bucky has long since exited the phone booth and stands on a rooftop opposite from a rather rundown apartment building, eyes focused on the window belonging to one Grant Douglas Ward, ex-SHIELD agent.

Bucky leaps right off the edge of the roof and clings to the wall of the other building like a spider, shuffling to the side until he aligns with Ward’s window and swinging through it in a swift movement.

He rolls and bounce back up to his feet once inside, mindful of the shattered glass on the matted carpet, just in time for Ward to come slipping into the room, gun cocked right at Bucky’s heart.

Ward is a deceptively handsome man with dark eyes that peer at him like a wolf’s predatory gaze, a sharp angular jaw covered with dark scruff, and heavyset eyebrows, and Bucky’s lips curl into a sharp smile to reveal his teeth when he says, “Daisy Johnson sends her greetings.”

Ward doesn’t lower his gun, and nor does his focus waver when he smiles blankly, an expression that sends chills down Bucky’s spine. “Skye was too busy to come herself?” Ward asks lightly.

“ _Daisy_ didn’t care to come,” Bucky tosses back venomously. “Must have been something about the time when you tried to kidnap and kill her and her friends.”

Ward laughs emotionlessly. “What a man does for love is not your business.”

“That wasn’t love,” Bucky growls back, a blind rage rearing up inside him at the thought of how Daisy suffered at the hands of this psychopath. “That was obsessive insanity.”

There’s a gunshot, and Bucky barely has time to drop to his knees to avoid the bullet. He straightens up and finds that Ward is smiling oddly.

“Oops,” he says with a chuckle. “I must have squeezed the trigger too hard.”

Then Bucky charges at him, swinging a hard punch at him before Ward can get another shot in.

Ward’s a highly-trained, skilled fighter, and so they trade blow for blow without breaking a sweat. Bucky’s almost evenly-matched, but the supersoldier serum flowing through his blood earns him the advantage every once in a while, like when he manages to knock the breath from Ward’s lungs with a well-placed punch or kick Ward’s legs out from under him.

The fight finally comes to an end when Bucky grabs a lamp from a nearby table and smashes it across Ward’s head, the other man stumbling to the floor. Bucky uses the distraction to dive for Ward’s abandoned gun and cock it at him. “I want to know everything you know about modern-day HYDRA,” he demands.

Ward smiles cruelly through his bloody teeth. “That’s not going to break me,” he taunts. “I was trained by the best that both SHIELD and HYDRA had to offer.”

“I know,” Bucky replies, his words patient despite his racing adrenaline, “but your brother Christian can. And Daisy has enough clout to ensure that happens. One click of a button, and Senator Ward will be sent your exact location. You could leave the city in the time it takes him to fly in from Massachusetts, I’m sure, but the police and Avengers will be sent information incriminating you as the city’s most wanted man. Daisy can make that happen, so, if I were you, I’d talk.”

Though he’s paled slightly, Ward barks a rough laugh. “And Daisy is spiteful enough to take revenge. Who would have thought?” He sighs in resignation and begins to talk.

 

* * *

 

**Bucky**

Favorite show?

 

**Steve**

Uh…Sense8? I don’t really watch television as much as I read. I just watch whatever Netflix suggests.

 

**Bucky**

That’s a crime! Prepare yourself for a FRIENDS marathon.

 

**Steve**

Oh, hey! That’s one of the shows Sam suggested.

 

**Bucky**

Good. This weekend. You, me, and ten seasons of hilarity. You’ll finally understand why Clint yells PIVOT all the time.

 

**Steve**

God, he does that to you too? Well, it’s not a hard sell if the offer includes spending time with you.

 

**Bucky**

Aren’t you a charmer? I’m blushing.

 

**Steve**

Thank you. I try.

 

* * *

 

“I’m gonna head to the ladies’ room,” Becca announces before she slips from the booth and leaves.

“Don’t get lost on the way there!” Bucky calls after her, snorting in laugher as Becca flips him the bird just before she enters an adjoining hallway and disappears. Then, he turns back to Daisy, smoothing his face into a more sober expression. Dropping his voice, he leans forward and murmurs, “I took care of Ward, but I’m going to need you to do one last thing for me. Can you crosscheck any SHIELD agents who were declared MIA or KIA at the time that SHIELD can dismantled? One of them may be behind HYDRA like Ward was.”

“That’s a fucking relief.” Daisy sighs, tucking an errant lock of dark hair behind her ear. “That rat bastard’s finally going to get what he belongs.” Her eyes flick around the restaurant quickly, likely checking for Becca’s return. “Besides, it’d be my honor. Taking down Nazis without even moving from my couch. Count me in.”

“You never used to be this lazy,” Bucky teases lightly.

Daisy shrugs, long eyelashes fluttering as she blinks. “Hey. Over the course of  two years, I went from a homeless hacker to a SHIELD agent to working with Tony Stark. My life’s always been a bit unpredictable.”

Before Bucky can reply, he spots Becca returning from the bathroom, so he changes the subject to something less illegal. “Have you guys decided the flower arrangement yet?”

“Oh, no,” Becca groans as she slides back into the booth. “Not that. We still have weeks before we actually have to start planning.” She shifts closer to her fiancée, dropping a quick peck on her lips.

“Those months will fly by before we realize it,” Daisy reminds Becca, tracing a gentle finger over the other woman’s lips.

They gaze at each other softly, lost in each other’s eyes, and Bucky smiles to himself. After a moment or two, he starts to feel incredibly awkward, so he clears his throat with a loud _ahem_ , and Becca snaps to him immediately.

“Look,” Bucky says, “you two might be the cutest lovebirds I’ve ever seen, but can you eye-fuck later? We’re in public space.”

Daisy snorts with laughter and then breaks off into chuckling some more, but Becca scowls at him. “Do you ever stop being an asshole?” she asks crossly.

“Hey.” Bucky shrugs. “I was voted BuzzFeed’s hottest male celebrity two years in a row. Maybe the asshole thing just works for people.”

“First of all,” Daisy says breathlessly as she finally stops laughing, “the only good thing to come out of BuzzFeed is their quizzes. And, second, I’d doubt the common sense of your fans, but Captain America seems to be one of them.”

“His name is Steve,” Bucky interrupts, pouting. “And I feel ganged up on.”

“Did he tell you to call him Steve before or after you stuck your tongue in his mouth?” Becca adds, eyes sparkling with amusement, and, now, it’s Bucky’s turn to scowl.

“I hate you,” he mutters under his breath.

And, as if it’s right on cue, Steve materializes to the side of their table.

“Hey, Buck,” he says, face lighting up and giving Bucky the distinct impression of an enthusiastic golden retriever wagging his tail. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Steve,” Bucky begins hoarsely, because the man looks as excellent as always. “Um, hi. I’m just here with my sister and Daisy.” He bites his lip awkwardly, because “Meet the Family” wasn’t very high on his list yet on how he wanted his relationship with Steve to proceed. He’d wanted to make sure that there actually was a relationship there.

“Hi,” Becca says eagerly, leaning out and sticking her hand out for Steve to shake. “I’m Rebecca Barnes, Bucky’s sister, but you can call me Becca.” She smiles widely with the patent Barnes charm.

Steve shakes Becca’s hand before releasing it. “Nice to meet you, Becca.” His lips curl into a stunning grin of his own, and Bucky’s heart flutters slightly. “I’m Steve Rogers.”

Daisy nods at Steve, giving him a little wave. “Hey, I’m Daisy Johnson, soon to be the newest Barnes. I’m the brains of this trio.”

“I guess that’ll make Becca the beauty,” Steve says thoughtfully. “But Bucky’s not too bad-looking either.”

Bucky’s mouth falls open as he looks rapidly between Becca and Steve in confusion. “I’m insulted,” he declares dramatically.

Becca ignores him. “Nah. I’m the heart. Bucky’s the beauty. At least, he should be for all the time he spends preening at his own reflection in the mirror every day.”

“Oh, shut it,” Bucky murmurs. He brightens up, turning to Steve. “Anyways, what are you doing here, Stevie?”

“I was here with Sam and Natasha and Sharon,” Steve replies, “but they seem to have wandered off. But, it wouldn’t hurt if I had some other company?” He peers at Bucky hopefully. “Of course, you don’t have to. I don’t want to ruin your dinner.”

Before Bucky can protest, Daisy pipes up. “That’s ridiculous,” she says. “You’re not ruining anything. Besides, Becca and I were just about to take off. She’s gotta get to work early tomorrow.”

 “How about you make your way to the bar?” Bucky offers. “I’ll meet you in a moment as soon as we split the bill.”

Steve nods. “Of course,” he says before smiling at Becca and Daisy. “It was lovely meeting you!” he tells them.

Daisy nods in return, and Becca smiles. Then Steve winks at Bucky before disappearing into the layout of the restaurant.

“Granddad would be proud of you,” Becca says as she rises to her feet and extends a hand out to Daisy, pulling her fiancée to her feet.

“Fuck off,” Bucky tells her with a straight face.

They pay the bill, and Bucky watches his sister and Daisy stroll out of the restaurant, hands intertwined, before he goes to join Steve, who he finds sitting on a stool before the bar and nursing a glass of bourbon.

“Not drinking?” Bucky asks curiously as he watches Steve swivel the glass around on the wood top of the bar, the amber liquid inside slowly swishing around the edges.

“I can’t get drunk,” Steve explains, “because of the serum.” He sets the glass down and pushes it away. “Tony insists that I order bourbon whenever I go to a restaurant or bar, because, apparently, it adds character to a man.”

“That’s funny coming from Tony Stark,” Bucky remarks as he takes a seat on the stool besides Steve’s. “The man has enough character to last him lifetimes.”

Steve stifles a chuckle. “He’s one of the greatest friends I could ever want; he’s just not really great at being subtle.”

Bucky smirks. “May I?” he asks, gesturing to the abandoned alcohol.

“Knock yourself out,” Steve replies, shrugging casually.

Tossing the alcohol back, Bucky drains the glass in one go and slams it against the corner, trying not to dent the wood too much like he has done in the past. Superstrength can really be a pest sometimes, even if Bucky’s had his entire lifetime to learn to control it. After the burn of the bourbon fades from his throat, Bucky wipes his lips with the back of his hand. “That was some top-quality stuff,” he comments.

Steve shrugs again. “Tony could probably tell the brand, but, then again, drinking isn’t really my thing.”

“Me neither,” Bucky replies. “Becca and I have high tolerances; it’s probably a genetic thing. I don’t see any point in drinking alcohol if it’s not going to get me drunk.”

Steve chuckles, a rich, smoky sound that makes Bucky want to drag him by the nape of his neck and kiss him senseless. “So,” Steve says, drawing out his words, “what did Becca mean when she said your grandfather would be proud of you?”

Bucky groans. “Becca has the ability to embarrass me even when she’s no longer in the building.” He pauses, expression turning sheepish. “I know you probably hate these kind of stories, but you saved my granddad during the war.”

Steve’s smile shifts slightly, almost bordering on uncomfortable. He straightens up, and his voice slips into an almost professional tone that Bucky immediately hates. “Which battle?” he asks.

“Steve,” Bucky says, voice tinged with hurt. “Please don’t do that to me. I’m not one of Cap’s fans. I’m here, because I want to date Steve Rogers. I want to date _you_. Please don’t close yourself off.”

Steve sighs, eyes softening from his neutral mask, and relaxes against the bar counter. “I’m sorry, Buck,” he says gently. “It’s always been a bit hard navigating who I should be with people. Most people want Captain Rogers.”

“And I want Stevie Rogers, a formerly-little punk from Brooklyn,” Bucky reminds him. “I understand where you’re coming from. I’m an actor for fuck’s sake. But this is Brooklyn. This is home. We’re in this crowded place, and no one cares who we are.”

“Alright,” Steve says, shoulders sagging even further. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Bucky traces the rim of the abandoned glass with his pinky.

“So,” Steve begins tentatively. “What did happen with your grandfather?”

“He was in Azzano,” Bucky states, and Steve’s small smile fades. “He was a sniper in the 107th, pretty good friends with Dum Dum Dugan. You unstrapped him from a table in Zola’s lab and led him to freedom.”

Steve’s expression turns contemplative. “I always wondered what happened to that soldier. He seemed shaken. I wanted to talk to him, but I could never find him.”

“He came home. The Army made him. He came back to Brooklyn and married a nice Romanian girl and gave birth to my mother,” Bucky explains.

“Oh,” Steve says quietly.

Sensing his unease, Bucky prods Steve on the side of the arm. “Granddad always said that Dum Dum Dugan was one of the funniest men he’d ever met. Do you have any stories?”

“Do I?” Steve asks with a laugh before proceeding to launch into a hilarious rendition of one of the Howling Commandos’ missions where Dum Dum apparently got stuck into a tree.

Bucky laughs in all the right places, but his eyes keep track of Steve’s stiffening shoulders and how the other man’s eyes cast a wary glance around the restaurant every few moments. When Steve finishes his story, Bucky smirks and places a hand on Steve’s wrist. “Wanna get out of here? This place is getting a bit dull.”

Steve’s expression is one of obvious relief. “Thank God,” he states. “I need some fresh air.”

“Well then.” Bucky’s smirk widens. “I’ve got ice cream and a couch to make out on back at my place. Let’s go.”

 

* * *

 

  _[img: Two men are sitting at a bar, leaning into each other’s touch. Though the picture quality’s grainy, the men are obviously James Barnes and Steve Rogers. Steve is staring up at James with softened eyes while the other man is clearly mid-sentence.]_

**68, 679 likes**

**brooklynbabe** Look who I spotted at my favorite Brooklyn hangout spot @officialsteverogers @therealjamesbarnes

 **stames** this is so cute!! they’re hanging out! #stames #datenight #look at the way they’re looking at each other

 **queensnygal** This is so faake! It’s obv a promo for that new Cap movie. I can’t even. Ugh. This movie’s going to suck. Barnes is a talentless pretty boy.

 

* * *

 

**To:** [jbuckyb@starkmail.com](mailto:jbuckyb@starkmail.com)

**From:** [skyesthelimit@starkmail.com](mailto:skyesthelimit@starkmail.com)

**Subject:** Your favor

 

Buck,

 

I looked into what you asked and attached a list of agents who were declared MIA or KIA and match similar profiles to Ward. There’s about five in total, and I listed them according to priority.

Daisy

 

* * *

 

“Didn’t expect to see you here, sailor,” Bucky teases as he saunters into the alleyway and finds Nomad leaning against a wall, thickly-muscled arms crossed across his chest.

“Soldier,” Nomad says with a hint of stern caution in his tone.

“Fine,” Bucky replies with a huff. “Take all the fun out of flirting.” He takes his own position standing across from Nomad; the alley is small and crammed and dirty, forcing them close enough together that they could kiss.

Not that he wants to kiss Nomad. Bucky barely knows one thing about the man besides that he’s serious and focused but can also be fun and flirty sometimes. And that he has a serious hard-on for taking down HYDRA that Bucky fully supports him in. But Bucky has someone at home. A tall, wonderful golden man named Steve.

“Soldier?” Nomad demands, obviously waiting for Bucky to respond.

“I got some answers out of Ward,” Bucky states simply before hurrying on when Nomad appears to bristle with agitation. “Apparently, HYDRA survived the war and found a home in SHIELD, where it grew its ranks for years.”

“Shit,” Nomad says, his voice nearly an emotionless snarl. “Shit.” He mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like _Oh, Peggy_ to Bucky.

“But HYDRA fell apart when SHIELD did,” Bucky tells him rapidly as Nomad glances up to fix his gaze on Bucky. “These guys who’re left, they think they’re some kind of new order of HYDRA or some fucked-up shit like that. The drug business was just an economic front to raise money, and Ward was in charge of that.”

Nomad begins to pace relentlessly, sighing. “And we can take care of that.” He halts suddenly before swiftly turning around to presumably burn a hole through the brick with his furious gaze. “But how?”

“I think I can help with that,” Bucky says, stepping forward, and, at the tentativeness in his voice, Nomad faces Bucky again. Bucky reaches into his pocket and retrieves a black flash drive, which he then brandishes at Nomad. “A friend of mine helped me out a bit.”

“And how much do you trust this friend of yours?” Nomad asks in his gravelly, low voice.

“With my life,” Bucky tells him solemnly. “She encoded all the information we’d ever need to incriminate Ward and his minions and shut down the drug branch of HYDRA. All we have to do is drop it on the steps of the nearest police precinct, and bye bye one of HYDRA’s heads.”

Nomad hums thoughtfully. “That could work,” he says. “Still, it would only cripple HYDRA, not destroy them completely.”

“It’s the best we can do,” Bucky offers helplessly.

He himself is not satisfied with this solution, but they are only two men, two vigilantes, in the face of an organization that used to be international and may very well still be.

Nomad strokes his chin in a manner that would be almost comical if the gravity of the current situation were not considered. He seems to have been thinking along the same line as Bucky, because, at that moment, he says, “There are others who can do what we can’t. If we leave this flash drive to the Avengers, they’d be able to take care of HYDRA much better than we could.”

It’s not really something Bucky has thought about. “But…” he says hesitantly.

“It’s pretty much out of our hands,” Nomad tells him coaxingly. “It’s not the best option, but the Avengers are good at wide-scale threats like this. You don’t even have to get involved. I can deliver the flash drive anonymously.”

“Alright,” Bucky says finally. “HYDRA’s left to the Avengers now.” There is an awkward pause where he traces a pattern in the dirt with the edge of his combat boot, unable to meet Nomad’s eyes. “I guess that’s the end of this,” he offers uncertainly.

“I’m sure we’ll meet again in the future,” Nomad says warmly. “New York’s not that big of a city.”

“Fuck off, Nomad,” Bucky says, his voice friendly and more solid. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

It’s the end of a brief partnership, but one that Bucky valued, and he doesn’t look back when he strides out of the alley.

 

* * *

 

**Bucky**

Yo, asshole, I’m dating Captain America.

 

**Clint**

Hey, asshole. I know. He never stops talking about you.

 

* * *

 

“Hey,” Bucky says as he steps through Steve’s door, holding up a pack of nicely-decorated glass bottles. “I brought peach lemonade from some hipster vintage soda shop that Becca likes.”

“That’ll go nicely with dinner,” Steve comments as he takes the pack from Bucky and sets it down gently on the carpeted floor. “I made chicken alfredo.”

“Sounds delicious,” Bucky hums as he shuffles closer to his boyfriend to drop a lazy kiss on his mouth.

Steve chuckles and, in one swift move, grabs Bucky by the wrist to flip him and pin him against the wall besides the door. He nuzzles his nose at Bucky’s neck and shoulders before trailing sweet butterfly kisses up to Bucky’s lips. They make out slowly and softly for several moments, undisturbed and peaceful until the silence is shattered rather rudely by the grumbling of Bucky’s stomach.

“Someone’s hungry,” Steve remarks as he steps back from Bucky, eyes fixed on the other man’s reddened and glossy mouth. “I’ll grab the food. Go ahead to the living room.”

Bucky scowls at him playfully but nods and wanders further into Steve’s apartment. He’s already been over a few times, and, each time, the four walls seem to seem a little more familiar. The apartment is pretty plain and utilitarian, but, if looked at closely enough, Steve’s style and decorating can be seen in tasteful throw pillows that line the couch and beautiful watercolors.

Grabbing the television remote, Bucky settles down on the couch and navigates his way through Steve’s Netflix queue until he finally finds FRIENDS. He’s just about to play the pilot episode as Steve comes bustling back in, two plates in hand, one of which he hands to Bucky along with a fork.

“Wait one minute,” he tells Bucky before disappearing back into his kitchen and returning with two bottles of the peach lemonade.

“This looks delicious,” Bucky tells his boyfriend earnestly. In fact, the savory scent drifting up from the plate only seems to agitate Bucky’s hunger more.

“I found it on the Internet,” Steve says mischievously.

Bucky chuckles before hitting play.

They watch mostly in silence save for the occasional comment or chuckle. At the end of the third episode, Steve rises to take the plates and empty bottles to the kitchen, refusing Bucky’s protests about allowing him to help. As the sky darkens and the tenth episode commences, Steve fetches a blanket from an ottoman at the opposite end of the room, which he then proceeds to drape over them. Warm and stomach sated, Bucky snuggles closer to his boyfriend, ducking under Steve’s arm.

Around the twelfth episode, he begins to doze off and snaps awake when Steve shifts to reach the remote and pause the show.

“Hey,” Steve says gently, smiling down at him. “It’s time to head to bed. You look like you’ll keel over at any moment.”

“I’ve had a long day,” Bucky mutters back.

He spent most of the day running lines and packing; the film begins filming in about a week, and his flight is in three days.

“C’mon,” Steve tells him as he herds him into his bedroom.

Bucky’s never really been in here, and he’s too tired to register the king-sized bed and navy color scheme.

“You want any pajamas?” Steve asks softly.

“Nah,” Bucky says and then strips down to his boxers. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see Steve gulp and attempt not to stare at Bucky’s torso and thick thighs, but Bucky only wants to sleep.

Steve quickly changes into sweats and removes his shirt to reveal miles of golden skin and muscle that Bucky would be gloriously happy to see at any other time of day. Steve proceeds to slip under his covers, pushing the blankets to the side until a single sheet remains. He then pats the other pillow invitingly, glancing up at Bucky.

Bucky shuffles over to the bed and flops on it, his body nearly melting against the softness of the mattress. Lazily, he drags his limbs over the bed and shifts closer until he’s nestling into Steve’s side, their bare skin brushing together. “Did you like the show?” he asks drowsily.

“I did,” Steve replies in amusement. “Ross seems like a douchebag, but I like Monica.”

“Monica’s awesome,” Bucky slurs, pressing his face into Steve’s shoulders. “Ross only gets worse.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” Steve tells him, dropping a kiss to the top of his head and curling his free hand around Bucky’s waist to pull his boyfriend closer.

“Cool,” Bucky states, eyes straining to stay open before they finally slip close. “Cool.”

As Bucky drifts off to sleep, he thinks he hears Steve say _I love you_.

 

* * *

 

**Steve**

Hiya, Buck. I’m sorry, but I’m gonna have to cancel our plans for today. The Avengers are being called in for a high-security mission. I’m gonna be gone for at least a few weeks, but it could also be up to a few months. I’m so sorry. Wifi’s going to be scarce so I won’t be in contact all the time, but I’ll try.

 

**Bucky**

Oh, shit. What are you sorry for, Stevie? You’re going to be doing your duty to help save the world. Stay safe, and message me whenever you can. I’ll be looking out for you, baby. Stay outta trouble, punk.

 

**Steve**

I hear you, jerk. I hear you.

 

* * *

 

 **Howling Commandos** @howlingcommandosnetflix

Filming for Netflix’s Howling Commandos commences today (10/1/17)

 _[img: A picture of a white script with only the cryptic title_ Howling Commandos _._ Classified _is stamped across the front cover in red.]_

 

* * *

 

_[img: A selfie of James Barnes winking as he poses in front of a mirror. Behind him is an indistinguishable background. His hair is distinctly blond and is slicked back in a pompadour but looks faded from the lighting and camera angle. He is swearing an old-fashioned Captain America suit, made popular by the comics, that is streaked with dirt and blood.]_

**369, 134 likes**

**therealjamesbarnes** @officialsteverogers How do I look?

 **officialsteverogers** You look better in that monkey suit than I ever did.

 

* * *

 

jaimesbarnes

> james barnes looks good with any hair color

#james barnes #he’s a blondie now #nina rambles

 

james-barnes-can-keep-my-barnes-doors-open

> I’m kinda conflicted about james’s new look. I know it’s only for the movie, but… I dunno. It’s not really him.

#james barnes #anyone remember when he bleached his hair #that looked godawful #but it could be worse

 

avengeance 

> as much as james barnes’s jawline is distinctly heroic, i don’t really know if i can see him as cap? it’s kinda weird considering his friendship with steve rogers

#but if cap’s okay with it #i guess i am too

 

hotandbotheredforrogers

> steve and james are straight up flirting on instagram. help me

#i can’t even #please send help #stames #dani shut up #gawd #help me

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: Awards season is still months away, but critics are already shoeing in movies for this year’s Oscars nominations. Will the most nominations go to Steven Spielberg’s newest hit or the year’s breakout star, Taika Waititi’s _Macbeth_?**

 

* * *

**Bucky**

How’s it going, Stevie? It’s been a few weeks since you replied. You okay?

 

**Steve**

Sorry, Buck. Just took a little while to find decent reception. I’m a little bruised and banged up, as is everyone else, but we’re okay. How’s filming?

 

**Bucky**

It’s been pretty good; we’re almost done. We shoot the last scene in a week’s time, and then everything else is editing. I can’t wait for you to see the finished result. I think you’ll love it. But, I miss you. It’s been bit lonely watching FRIENDS without you.

 

**Steve**

I miss you too, Buck. I’ll be back in New York soon hopefully. And I can’t wait to see the film. Shhh….no spoilers. For either. Don’t watch too much without me. I want to see Chandler and Monica get married.

 

* * *

 

 **Howling Commandos** @howlingcommandosnetflix

It’s time to honor the real heroes.

_[img: A gif of grainy footage of Steve Rogers, in his Captain America uniform from the war, doubling over in laughter. The Howling Commandos are visible behind him. Dum Dum Dugan is also cracking up, a hand braced on Gabe Jones’s shoulder. Jim Morita and James Falsworth are smirking widely. Jacques Dernier and Peggy Carter are barely noticeable chatting in a corner of the frame.]_

 

* * *

 

_[img: A picture of the New York skyline at early morning. The sky is breaking out in purple-pink streaks, and fog is crowding the horizon. The picture is taken through a rain-streaked window, and several lights are visible in the buildings opposite the camera.]_

**therealjamesbarnes** I’m back, baby!

 

* * *

 

Bucky’s alarm clock goes off, the shrill noise reverberating around his large bedroom, and he rolls over in his warm bed to bury his face in his pillow, groaning. He shifts around a few more times, attempting to ignore his alarm, but it is hard to get comfortable without missing a certain handsome blond.

“Uhhh,” he groans again, flailing his left arm wildly in the direction of his nightstand in a disastrous attempt to hit snooze. He accidentally knocks the clock off the surface, and it clatters to the floor in a loud crash that makes Bucky wince and worry for his sensitive ears. There is the sound of glass shattering; he hopes that the alarm clock isn’t too damaged. He’s spent way too much money replacing alarm clocks and door knobs over the course of his life.

His flight got in very late on Friday, and, two days later, he’s been trying to sleep off all the exhaustion from filming. Still, he needs to return to his usual routine, no matter how unappealing running before dawn sounds to him currently.

Prying his bleary eyes open, Bucky slips from the bed, carefully dancing around the remains of the clock. It’s unfortunately unsalvageable, so he mentally reminds himself to head to Target or something to buy another one. Or he’ll just find one on Amazon.

With graceful but sluggish movements, he heads to his closet. Despite usually only sleeping in boxers, last night was unusually cold for December in New York, no matter how high Bucky cranked his heating, so he shucks off his sleep shirt and pajama pants. He drops them into his hamper and pulls on a layer of thermal before slipping on his running gear.

He stumbles out of his bedroom, grabbing his phone and wallet on the way. At the door, he toes his feet into his sneakers before making his way to the hallway and the elevator.

The frigid December air blasts him in the face the moment he pushes the heavy double doors of his apartment building open. There is light snowfall blanketing cars, but the ice has been mostly cleared off the sidewalk and street, making it somewhat safe and dry.

After briefly stretching, Bucky starts off in a light jog for a few blocks, watching the familiar shops and buildings blur by. He makes sure to keep a control on his speed; no need to make the early morning news by running at full capacity, and blowing his cover to everyone in the goddamn city.

He’s running at what a normal person would consider full speed without breaking into a sweat when he circles past his apartment building the first time. The sky has lightened considerably, but there are still very few New Yorkers out and about, keeping the city that never sleeps somewhat silent. There is something beautifully melancholic about the scene, and Bucky can’t help but be reminded of the morning he spent with Steve in the diner.

Finally, when it’s been over an hour and there is a fine sheen of perspiration gleaming at the base of his neck, he gradually slows into a walk, watching local business owners start to trickle into their shops and set up for the day. He waves to some familiar faces, smiling at the newer ones. The neighborhood is mostly used to him; he’s lived here for years before he became globally famous.

Bucky’s passing through a seedier part of the neighborhood, his thoughts wandering towards Steve who promised that he’ll be coming home any day now, when a sudden hand latches on to his wrist and drags him into an alley behind a bar. The hand belongs to a figure clad in black who only manages to put Bucky in a chokehold because of a moment of distraction.

The fine, sharp point of a blade comes to rest on his Adam’s apple, and the figure growls into his ear, “Careful, pretty boy.”

Bucky rolls his eyes, which, thankfully, the man cannot see. It’s not that people haven’t ever managed to get the jump on him; it’s just that it’s usually when he’s clad as the Soldier, when he can be expected to fight back. Rarely has anyone tried to attack him as James Barnes, the actor.

He waits for a millisecond, trying to read the man’s heartbeat and breathing patterns for his next moves. Bucky’s attacker is tense, not completely relaxed but also not entirely on guard, so it’s easy for Bucky to make his move.

Driving his elbow backwards into his attacker’s softer gut, he doesn’t wait until the other man doubles over, immediately flipping around and throwing the man to the ground. He grabs the abandoned knife and flings it upwards with precision where it embeds itself between some bricks at the top of the alley wall.

“You’re not getting away that quickly,” the man promises breathlessly as he staggers to his feet, attempting to sound threatening.

“For fuck’s sake,” Bucky exclaims, throwing his hands up in the air with frustration. “I just wanted a peaceful run. Was that too much to ask for?”

As the man rushes him sloppily, Bucky lazily dodges a punch and a kick to the chest before simply shoving the man to the ground with only the slightest bit of extra force.

Once he springs back to his feet, the man’s expression grows sober, his eyes hardening as he swiftly unleashes a series of well-placed strikes to Bucky’s ribs. Bucky dances back, his heartbeat spiking slightly as adrenaline rushes to his body. The last blow glances off his side, and he stumbles slightly and falls prey to a savage punch that knocks the breath from his lungs.

A final roundhouse-kick to the side has Bucky’s knees wobbling and then folding as he crumples to the ground, clutching his side. His attacker clearly has the advantage here, and Bucky’s eyes scan him for weaknesses, mind racing for strategies to escape this fight unscathed.

He doesn’t stand a chance when the man grabs him by the neck, pressing a white handkerchief to his mouth.

It all seems fairly cliched, Bucky thinks as he registers the faintly sweet but artificial odor on the cloth.

“Are you seriously trying to chloroform me?” Bucky tries to mumble, but his words are muffled. The man only presses the handkerchief closer to his mouth.

Bucky begins to feel slightly woozy, but it’s a feeling like when he’s had one glass of alcohol and is only buzzed. He laughs, the sound distorted by the cloth. “This is fucking stupid,” he declares, struggling wildly in the man’s grasp.

“Christ!” the man says as he tightens his grip on Bucky’s neck. “Do I need horse tranquilizers to knock you out or something? I swear.”

“You wish,” Bucky says in boredom. “Can you like let me go or something? I need to go home and cook breakfast.” His stomach growls pointedly. “I have some plants to water and shit. Why are you wasting my time?”

“For an actor,” the man growls, “you talk too much. Aren’t you supposed to be vapid and smile prettily?”

“I have a degree from NYU,” Bucky informs him snootily. “I nearly went to MIT for mechanical engineering.”

For Bucky’s attacker, this appears to be the breaking point of his patience. Bucky can only hear rustling as the man reaches a hand into a pocket, but the chloroform is still somewhat effective, enough that he is weak and cannot shrug off the man’s chokehold.

There is the cold string of a needle piercing the vulnerable skin of his neck, and then something freezing is flooding his system, flowing up to his head and inducing dizziness.

Bucky groans and slumps sideways, his vision blurring. “What’s happening?” he slurs.

“Oh, thank fuck,” the man, now a hazy smudge of black, says. “You’ll make the perfect bait for your captain.”

With those final words floating through the thick fog of his mind, Bucky blacks out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry??? What do you think is going to happen to Bucky? Let me know in the comments! Follow me on tumblr [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/). Reblog the tumblr post [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/post/171228104779/the-sokovian-accords-were-created-right-after-the).


	3. i'm helpless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy birthday, Buck! 
> 
> Please heed the tags. They have been updated. Otherwise, enjoy!

**Unknown**

Five billion dollars or your boy gets it.

_[img: A battered and bloodied Bucky chained to a pole by his hands. His head lolls backwards; he’s obviously unconscious and dressed in running gear. Despite his abysmal appearance, there are no actual wounds visible on his exposed skin, though there is blood dried along his hairline.]_

 

**Steve**

Who are you? What did you fucking do to him?

 

* * *

 

It’s maybe ten minutes later after Steve received the text with the picture of Bucky and he’s slumped on the floor outside a conference room in Stark Tower, shield cradled in his arms, when Natasha steps into the hallway, her jade eyes hardened, and tells him, “We found your boy.”

Steve springs to his feet in a blur, slinging the shield back onto its harness. His lips are pressed into an angry line, and his handsome features are marred by an ugly emotion. “Let’s go,” he orders, and Natasha gives him a quick nod.

The Avengers in their full might descend upon the highly-secure facility that used to be a SHIELD safe house, forming a thin but tight perimeter around the building.

“How’s this going to go down?” Sam asks anxiously from Steve’s right where he’s standing with his wings folded but with Red Wing hovering above his head, casting a wary glance at the blond.

Steve’s face remains impassive as he stands there, shield held defensively before his body. His shoulders are tense, and he’s still in his bloody and dirty uniform, not having changed since their plane returned from Europe hours ago. The only thought racing through his empty mind is _BuckyBuckyBuckyBuckyBuckyBucky_.

HYDRA already took everything from him; he won’t let them take his boyfriend.

“We’ll have to lure them out,” Tony states, tone unusually grim. “The building’s well-fortified. Someone clearly invested money into this thing. JARVIS can’t scan past the walls, so we have no idea who or what’s inside.”

The only acknowledgement that Steve heard Tony is the quick dart of his blue eyes to the side and the savage twist of his mouth into a frown.

“So, do I keep standing here?” Bruce asks wryly. “I get that the situation is really important here, but you don’t really want a Hulk transformation in midtown Manhattan.”

Natasha opens her mouth to reply to Bruce, but Steve cocks his head forward, holding a curt hand up to silence Natasha. “Wait,” he says in a voice raspy with anticipation.

It’s only a few more minutes before the rest of them hear it too, the distant sound of footsteps echoing down a hallway, growing closer and closer and closer, and the heavy metal door of the building is squeaking open slowly.

Steve crouches into a defensive position, and Tony’s gauntlets whirr as he fires up his repulsors and takes aim. Clint draws back an arrow, Bruce takes a step back, and Natasha and Sam move closer to Steve.

Then someone’s stepping into their line of view and crying, “Wait! Don’t shoot!”

It’s Bucky, bloodied, bruised, and beautiful.

Steve doesn’t register the fact that he’s lowered his shield until he’s taken off in a sprint and crossed the few feet between them in a matter of seconds, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend and capturing his lips in a desperate, passionate kiss.

Moments later, Steve’s aware that Sam has moved behind him, saying, “Woah. Steve. Let your boy breathe.”

Steve ignores him, reaching gently to tilt Bucky’s head up and deepen the kiss. Bucky whimpers into his mouth, his knees wavering slightly as he almost falls against Steve.

With an awkward chuckle, Clint says, “Hi, Buck. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Sam shakes his head. “C’mon. Let’s go clear out this place.” He motions Tony and Natasha to follow and the Avengers, minus Steve and Bruce standing uncomfortably in the background, make their way into the building.

Finally stepping back, Steve places a steady hand on Bucky’s shoulder. “Steady there, Buck,” he says with a relieved chuckle, and Bucky glares at him as he recovers his breath. Then, Bucky shifts backwards in Steve’s grip, and he catches a glimpse of scarlet and hurriedly pushes his boyfriend away to studiously eye him for injuries.

There is a streak of blood matting the hair at Bucky’s hairline, his sweatshirt is torn across his chest, and his leggings are ripped at the knees.  But, most alarmingly, there’s a large patch of blood-darkened cloth plastered across Bucky’s muscular abdomen, with a similar patch down the side of his right thigh.

Steve’s hands begin to move of their own accord, patting Bucky down hurriedly, his eyes wide and mind numb with concern. His eyes widen even more when he burrows his hands under Bucky’s clothes and brushing them across warm, flawless skin.

“Hey, hey,” Bucky says gently. “It’s alright, Stevie. I’m alright. I’m fine.” With a careful hand, he tugs Steve into a hug, using the other to tenderly cup the other man’s cheek. “I’m alright,” he whispers into Steve’s hair.

When they separate, Steve can’t stop gazing at Bucky in bewilderedly. “You’re covered in blood,” he says. “How can you be alright?”

Bucky bites his lip in hesitation and sighs. “Stevie. I’m the Winter Soldier.”

Steve stares slack-jawed at his boyfriend. “What?”

With a slight wince, Bucky hurries on, “Remember I told you about my grandad? Zola experimented on him in an attempt to recreate your serum. Neither of them knew it until my grandad returned to Brooklyn, but Zola had succeeded. Made my grandad a knock-off supersoldier. Everyone in my family’s like that. Mom never really needed to use her abilities and neither did Becca but, when I saw people suffering on the streets of the city after the Sokovian Accords, I couldn’t just stand there. So I went out one night with a mask, and then I went out the night after that and the night after that, and eventually I just became the Winter Soldier.”

Steve doesn’t know what to say to that; he’s torn between engulfing Bucky in another tight hug or laughing at the irony. But he doesn’t get the chance to do either because, at that moment, Tony’s voice is flooding in on his comm. “JARVIS sent a car for you and the boytoy. Get him out of here and to medical.”

But, the funny thing is that Bucky doesn’t actually need the medical wing.

Swallowing despite his dry mouth, he allows his eyes to flick over quickly to his boyfriend who’s anxious and watching him intently. “Let’s get out of here. Tony’s got a car waiting nearby,” he tells Bucky hoarsely.

No one ever said that Captain America was good at expressing his emotions, and no one ever said that Steve Rogers was either.

Bucky can’t help but appear a little disappointed, his gaze downcast and his lips turned up in a frown. “Alright,” he agrees reluctantly.

Yeah, Steve’s fucked up a little.

They trudge to the car parked a few streets away and endure an awkward, silent ride back to the Tower. Steve’s only relief is that the car is driverless and that there is no extra person to experience the very uncomfortable tension.

Bypassing the main entrance of the Tower is quick via the aid of Steve’s Avengers ID, but the elevator ride up to Steve’s apartment is possibly even more awkward than the car ride, with two grown men trapped in the equivalent of a tin can.

When the doors finally slide open with a silent chime, Steve nearly launches himself into his apartment with relief, Bucky following closely behind.

“Uh…” Steve says when his gaze finally settles on the knocked-over lamp and trampled plant in his living room.

“In a bit of a rush, were you?” Bucky jokes lightly, though his words are missing his usual charisma and confidence.

Designed mostly by Pepper, Steve’s apartment is quite modern and nicely-decorated, but it’s not, simply put, Steve’s style. Regardless, he usually stays here out of necessity, not comfort. In fact, the last time he was in here was a few hours ago and had rocketed to the elevator when he received the text far too quickly judging by the items he’d knocked over in his haste.

“Yeah, I’m not really here often,” Steve clarifies with a sigh.

Things get back to that awkward silence quickly.

Bucky’s brow knits together tensely, and his pouty lips are still in that frown.  Steve’s heart twinges painfully; he can’t watch his boyfriend look so distraught. So, he blurts it out:

“I’m Nomad.”

Those pretty ocean eyes widen, round like dinner plates, and his eyebrows separate and rise. “I’m sorry?” Bucky asks in bewilderment. “Did you just tell me that you’re Nomad? Like the vigilante I work with, Nomad? Like the guy whose ass I’ve been staring at guiltily for weeks, Nomad?”

Steve chuckles slightly but falls silent when Bucky doesn’t look really amused. “Yes,” he offers tersely.

There’s a pause as Bucky chews at his lower lip, the moment stretching unbearably long as Steve realizes that their roles have just reversed from when Bucky confessed his identity less than half an hour ago.

Suddenly, Bucky bursts out laughing, almost doubling over. He remains sniggering for a full minute while Steve watches in confusion. When Bucky finally straightens up, he cracks a smile. “We’re such idiots,” he tells Steve. “We’ve been working together for months while we were dating, and we never even realized it.”

Now, Steve finally sees the humor in their situation and snorts. It really is ridiculous. Only two idiots like them could end up like this.

“Get over here,” Bucky say abruptly. “It’s been like three months, and I was kidnapped by some dumbasses. I wanna kiss my best guy.”

“Your best guy?” Steve asks in amusement but still obeys Bucky’s order, shifting closer and slipping his arms around Bucky’s waist. He allows one hand to wander down to rest just above Bucky’s ass.

“Shuddup,” Bucky tells him warmly. “I don’t know what you old fossils say.” He places one hand on Steve’s upper back, slinging the other around his neck, and pulls Steve forward with a gentle jerk, enough that their chests brush.

They’re almost at even height, but Steve is just the tiniest bit taller, meaning that when he stares down at Bucky’s hungry expression his mouth becomes unbelievably dry.

“Peggy was my best gal,” Steve hums thoughtfully. “My best gal and my best guy…I like the sound of that.” With that, his hand subtly slides to cup Bucky’s ass.

Steve remains staring into Bucky’s eyes, half-hard as Bucky is too, based on the bulge brushing against Steve’s uniformed leg. The pull between them is magnetic, and anyone who walked in at this moment would describe it as seeing literal sparks flying.

Then, any restraint between the two of them breaks.  

Bucky surges up just as Steve leans down, and their mouths meet in a heart-stopping kiss. Bucky’s mouth is warm, wet, and soft, and Steve doesn’t resist temptation as he tilts his head to deepen the angle.

They move closer, if that’s even physically possible, until every possible inch of Steve’s clothed skin is touching Bucky’s. It’s driving Steve crazy as they kiss and kiss and kiss.

“God,” Bucky groans breathlessly as they part to give their bruising lips some relief. Immediately, Steve buries his face in Bucky’s neck, kissing up and leaving a trail of marked skin in his way, and Bucky tilts his head to give Steve better access, his knees wobbling slightly as a hand comes to clutch at Steve’s head. “You need to take your clothes off.”

Steve finally lifts his head. “I can do something better,” he offers in raspy voice that makes Bucky’s eyes flutter shut and shivers. “The bedroom’s that way.”

Bucky’s eyes spring open, and he stares up at Steve in slight confusion. “I thought you wanted to wait?” he asks softly.

“We’ve waited enough,” Steve explains with a content smile, eyes darkening.

He really doesn’t think that he can wait anymore.

Bucky bites his bottom lip, which is already as slick with saliva and pink as can be, and Steve suppresses a groan. “Let’s go,” Bucky announces quietly.

That’s enough for Steve, and he gently latches onto Bucky’s wrist, guiding him along as they hurry to the bedroom.

They slip through the doorway, and Bucky swirls around and shoves Steve against the wall with a thud, smiling up at him mischievously. “This is gonna be so much fun,” he declares with a dirty smirk. “We can both go on for hours.”

Steve throws back his head and groans before making grabby hands at his boyfriend. Bucky kicks at the door before moving towards Steve, the door slamming shut loudly behind him.

 

* * *

 

**TRENDING: UN announced that the Avengers have returned safely from a UN-sanctioned, three-month long mission taking down terrorist cells in Europe.**

 

* * *

 

 

**FIFTEEN TIMES JAMES BARNES AND STEVE ROGERS HAD THE IDEAL FRIENDSHIP THAT WE ENVY**

They have like the ultimate celebrity bromance.

 

* * *

 

Steve sits in his chair, shifting uncomfortably when his gaze falls upon his boyfriend sitting beside him and all he can hear is the noises that Bucky made last night when he orgasmed. His cheeks flush pink and, across the table, Natasha raises a questioning eyebrow at him, smirking like she knows what he’s thinking about.

“Alright, Capiscle,” Tony says loudly as he enters the conference room, the door automatically swinging shut behind him. “All the Avengers are here and accounted for. Well, except for Clint, but he’ll find his way here. Let’s get this meeting on the road.”

Coughing to clear his throat, Steve nods and tugs at the constrictive neck of his sweater. He clears his throat again and then stands. “Right. Everyone, this is Bucky.”

“We already did the introductions, Stevie,” Bucky cuts in with an encouraging nod. “Bruce made me some tea while you were still sleeping.”

“Bucky shared some excellent tea bar recommendations with me,” Bruce adds quietly.

“Your boyfriend’s quite a comedian,” Sam tells Steve with a crooked smile. “Nearly made me spill my coffee in the kitchen.”

“Okay…” Steve says hesitantly before turning back to the holographic screen that JARVIS is projecting. “Nat, the honor’s yours.” He nods at Natasha.

Just as she opens her mouth, the door opens and in stumbles Clint, yawning and holding a cup of coffee with a clear bedhead. He casts a confused glance around the room. “What the heck? Why are you guys here? Our meeting’s at ten.”

“Buddy,” Bucky begins in amusement, “it is ten.”

“Oh.” Clint looks down at his wrist for a watch that isn’t really there. “I guess it is.” He shuffles into the nearest chair and drops down with another yawn. “Cool. Carry on, I guess.”

Natasha rolls her eyes, tucking a curly lock of red behind her ear. She adjusts her grip on her tablet and flicks upwards on the screen, projecting the picture of a broad-faced, clean-shaven man onto the holographic screen. “This is Jack Rollins, formerly of one of the best STRIKE teams SHIELD had to offer. He personally attempted to kidnap James. We found him and his men unconscious inside the facility.”

Clint, who had been taking a rather large gulp of his coffee, spits onto the table by accident. “Aww, coffee, no,” he cries, using the sleeve of his t-shirt to attempt to mop up the spill.

Steve frowns. “You knew Rollins?” he asks Natasha.

She shakes her head, ponytail swaying along with the motion. “Not particularly well. Clint worked with him a few times.”

Tony snaps his fingers in front of Clint’s face. “Yo, Hawkdude. What do you know about Rollins?”

Clint gives up on the table, cradling his stained arm in his lap. “He was the quiet, serious type. Always in his own head, never said much. Made him dangerous, especially now that you realize that he was really HYDRA. But, it was his buddy Rumlow who we need to look out for..”

Natasha nods in agreement. “I had a few runs-in with Rumlow myself. He played double agent very well, but you could always tell that something was off with him if you looked close enough past the surface.” She swipes at her tablet screen, and the picture on the holograph changes to a man with a narrow, scruffy jaw and dark, malicious eyes. “Former STRIKE Agent Brock Rumlow. One of SHIELD’s best and most dangerous. He and Rollins were presumed dead in their last mission before SHIELD was disbanded.”

“It must have been a plan,” Bucky says for the first time now, and all eyes turn to him. “The way Ward talked had made it sound like HYDRA had some idea of what was coming to SHIELD. So, Rollins and Rumlow must have gone underground.”

“Man,” Sam comments in exasperation. “Nazis were always sketchy as hell.”

“You got that right,” Steve mutters.

“Some intel that we uncovered indicates that Rollins and Rumlow had been working to rebuild HYDRA for years before they resurfaced in the last six months. They gathered followers, money, whatever resources they could. When Steve and James took down Ward’s cartel,” Natasha says, “HYDRA lost all its money.”

“Why’d they kidnap Buckbuck then?” Clint asks astutely.

“Rollins was trying to ransom Bucky for money,” Steve tells him, and Clint scowls in anger.

“They didn’t get me, buddy,” Bucky says placatingly.

“It was a desperate bid,” Natasha tells them. “Rollins got caught, and now he’s being thrown in the same federal prison as Grant Ward.”

“Good,” Bucky states grimly, nose flared with disgust. “The bastard got what was coming for him.”

Steve wonders which of the two men Bucky could be referring to and then flashes back to their back alley discussion about Ward months back, making a note to ask Bucky about his history with Ward sometime later.

“Wait,” Bruce speaks up, “what about Rumlow?”

“He’s still at large,” Natasha explains. “We’ll keep an eye out for him, since all signs point to him having been the mastermind. But, until then, we don’t know what he’s planning.”

Tony sighs loudly. “I can set JARVIS on him and scour the city’s cameras. We’ll find him eventually.”

Steve frowns slightly. He’s a bit frustrated that they can’t do more but also in complete understanding.

“Alright.” Tony spins around in his office chair. “In the meantime, I can start the paperwork for Mr. Movie Star here.”

“What paperwork?” Bucky says suddenly, and Steve too looks on with interest.

“The paperwork to become an Avenger,” Tony offers in bewilderment.

“Oh.” There is a moment’s pause before Bucky laughs. “Thanks for the offer, Tony, but I’ll sit this out. I don’t think being an actual superhero is for me.”

Tony stares at Bucky for a minute before shrugging. “Okay, Buckaroo. Suit yourself.” He springs from his chair and hurries from the room, calling, “Let me know if you change your mind.”

“I don’t think I really will change my mind,” Bucky tells Steve softly.

Steve cracks a smile. “Well, it is your decision, no matter what,” he tells his boyfriend. “I won’t force you to do anything.”

Now, Bucky smiles too, leaning up to press a quick to the corner of Steve’s mouth. “You’re the sweetest, Stevie.”

 

* * *

 

**The following is a transcript from an interview published in _Vanity Fair_ ’s January edition**

 

 _Christine Everhart:_ Thank you for joining me, James.

 

 _James Barnes:_ It’s my pleasure, Christine.

 

 _Everhart:_ Now that the Oscars nominations announcement is looming closer, speculation has been all over the place about who will be nominated. Your name has been mentioned several times for Best Actor for your role as Macbeth in _Macbeth_ , which has also been thought to be short-listed for Best Movie and Best Director for Taika Waititi. What are your thoughts on this, James?

 

 _Barnes:_ As an actor, I devote myself to finding roles and characters that tell stories that the audience can relate to, no matter how outlandish or odd they are. With _Macbeth_ especially, the play was sent in pre-medieval Scotland despite being written by Shakespeare in sixteenth or seventeenth century London. But, besides all that, you can still see how relatable the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are for people. That’s why the play is so popular, and that’s part of the reason that I believe that our movie has been so popular too. As for nominations, I would be honored if I was nominated, but it could go either way. Still, I’d be grateful.

 

 _Everhart:_ That’s wonderful. Of course, speaking of Lady Macbeth, your co-star Patricia Walker has recently come under fire for claiming a romantic relationship with her friend Jessica Jones. What would you say about that?

 

 _Barnes:_ What would I say about that? I’d object to your use of “claiming,” considering that I know both Trish and Jess and their relationship. They are both incredibly in love, so I don’t think Trish is “claiming” a romantic relationship with Jess as you said.

 

 _Everhart:_ Yes, but how can that be a real relationship?

 

 _Barnes:_ Wow! You know, Steve and Tony had both said you were a bitch, but I took a chance on you despite that. But, it looks like you’re also homophobic on top of that.

 

 _Everhart:_ Tony Stark’s opinion has always been something to doubt, but how was anything I said even homophobic? I simply do not see how two women can love each other without a man.

 

 _Barnes:_ It’s like you don’t even hear yourself talk. I’m just…no! Fuck this! Trish and Jess have a love and relationship you cannot ever understand, Everhart, and nor will you ever. So, you can just fuck right off a cliff!

 

_[Editor’s note: At this point, Mr. Barnes stormed off the venue, and the interview was forcibly concluded here. Ms. Everhart was placed on leave and has now since been fired when it was uncovered that she had made more racist and homophobic comments in front of interviewees in the past.]_

 

* * *

 

jaimesbarnes

> oh my god. i can’t believe that james actually did that!

#james barnes #nina rambles #christine everhart for tw

 

hotandbotheredforrogers

> james barnes is the hero we all need but we do not deserve

#james barnes #vanity fair interview

 

queentrishwalker

> I’m so glad that Trish and her girlfriend have supportive friends and allies!

#trish walker #james barnes

 

hollywoodhollywhat

> Say what you will about Hollywood and its actors, but, when Christine Everhart started making homophobic comments about his co-star Trish Walker, James Barnes stood up and walked out of his Vanity Fair interview.

#james barnes #damn #hollywood

 

* * *

 

 **Trish Walker** @RealTrishWalker

Thank you @officialjamesbbarnes. You’re a true friend!

 

* * *

 

One morning, Steve wakes up to the sound of Bucky stumbling around in his bathroom. The sun’s rays filter in softly through the windows lining the room, warming the sheets, and Steve stretches his limbs out, sighing contentedly.

A quiet thud from the bathroom and the sound of Bucky swearing is enough to tempt Steve to sit up, causing the sheet to fall as he slips to his feet. He pads lazily to the bathroom, rubbing his eyes as he goes.

“Hey, Buck,” Steve says as he enters the bathroom to find colorful bottles littered over the counter and one turned sideways on the marble floor as if it toppled over. Bucky’s face is turned away from Steve as he rifles through the floating shelf that lines the wall. “What’re you doing?” Bucky chooses that moment to swivel around, and Steve leaps back in alarm. “Holy shit!” he cries, pressing himself against the doorway.

Bucky rolls his eyes. “It’s me, Steve,” he tells Steve sarcastically. “I’m just looking for my avocado and shea butter face wash.”

“What’s on your face?” Steve asks with an aghast expression.

There a weirdly transparent and paper-like substance plastered to Bucky’s face, covering almost every inch. Paired with his spikey bedhead, he looks a cross between comical and somewhat disturbing.

“It’s a face mask,” Bucky explains. “It’s supposed to hydrate my skin.” When Steve continues to look skeptical, Bucky states, “It’s all the rage in Korea right now.”

“Alright,” Steve replies with a restrained nod. “And why do you need this face mask?”

“To hydrate my skin!” Bucky chirps. He rolls his eyes again. “Honestly, Stevie. The Oscars are in a few months. I need to get back to my beauty regimen. I’ve grown lax.”

“You have a beauty regime?” Steve questions in disbelief. “Why? You’re one of the hottest fucking men I’ve ever seen.”

“Aww,” Bucky coos. “That’s because I take great care in the health of my skin. But I’ve been growing lazy. When I woke up this morning, I found a pimple. A pimple. Can you imagine?” He sounds so disgusted and insulted that Steve wants to laugh, but he doesn’t.

His heart swells with warmth and adoration.

“I love you,” Steve blurts out.

There’s stunned silence as they gaze at each other in astonishment.

“I mean,” Steve says again. “I-”

“Did you mean that?” Bucky asks. Most of his expression is covered by the mask, but his eyes are glancing at Steve beseechingly and full of affection. In this moment, they seen bluer than they have ever been. “Did you mean that?”

“I do,” Steve admits honestly. “I do love you. I just wanted to tell you at a different moment.”

“Too late,” Bucky comments, “but that doesn’t matter, because I love you too.”

Steve’s so overcome with emotion that he stands frozen, but, as always, Bucky knows want to do.

“Come here,” he orders, reaching out with his hands. “I wanna kiss you.”

Jolted in motion, Steve jumps back. “No way. not with that on your face,” he says as he slowly backs out of the bathroom. “Join me in bed when you’re done with that. We can celebrate there.”

Bucky’s handsome laugh echoes in his ears as he shuffles back to their bed.

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: The Oscars nominations are out! Up for 12 nominations is Taika Waititi’s _Macbeth_ , including Best Picture, Best Director for Waititi, Best Actor for male lead James Barnes, and Best Actress for female lead Trish Walker.**

 

* * *

 

jaimesbarnes

> I can’t believe our boy got nominated! I’m so proud! I can’t even!

#james barnes #nina rambles #the Oscars #oh my gawd #this is so awesome

 

james-barnes-can-keep-my-barnes-doors-open

> @ultimateshakespearefan yo, buddy! Did you hear about the _Macbeth_ nominations?

#macbeth the movie #so proud of james #james barnes #love him so much

 

causalbarnesfan

> I gotta change my url to superbarnesfan cause our boy just nominated!

#james barnes #woohoo excited af

 

queentrishwalker

> Congrats to my queen Trish Walker for her OSCAR NOMINATION!!!!!!! Also, congrats to James Barnes!

#trish walker #james barnes

 

* * *

 

 **James B. Barnes** @officialjamesbbarnes

I can’t believe it! I just got nominated for my first Oscar!!!! Thank you to all my fans, friends, family, @RealTrishWalker, @TaikaWaititi for this opportunity!

 

 **Steve Rogers** @officialcaprogers

I am so proud of you @officialjamesbbarnes!

 

* * *

 

_[img: James Barnes, Steve Rogers, Trish Walker, and Jessica Jones pose on the iconic Oscars red carpet, all smiling for the cameras. James is wearing a blue velvet suit with a black bow tie, his hair tied up in a neat bun, while Steve is wearing a traditional black tuxedo with his hair gelled back. Trish’s hair is braided back in an updo, and she is wearing a blush-pink lace gown and pale pink heels with a pearl bracelet, earrings, and clutch. Jessica is wearing a black suit accented with leather and black heels with her hair cropped just below her chin.]_

**689, 666 likes**

**buzzfeedceleb** Actress Trish Walker poses with her girlfriend Jessica and co-star James Barnes and his plus-one Captain Steve Rogers.

 **falconsamwilson** Seriously, @officialsteverogers. Does our friendship mean nothing anymore? You never take me places like this!

 **trishwalkerfan001** “Actress Trish Walker and her girlfriend Jessica!” I think I squealed a little too loudly on the train! They look so gorgeous!

 **brooklynbabe** Look, say whatever you want to about James’s relationship with Cap, but, if I was nominated for an Oscar, I’d take whoever I was closest too!

 **stames** You call it plus-one; we call it boyfriend. #stames #steveandjames4ever

 

* * *

 

**Transcript from the ABC broadcast of the 90** ** th ** **Academy Awards, aired March 4, 2018**

 

 _Announcer:_ Now, presenting the Best Actor award, here is _iTonya_ star and Best Actress nominee Margot Robbie and _Hamilton_ creator Lin-Manuel Miranda!

 

_[Lin-Manuel Miranda, in a blue suit, and Margot Robbie, in a white gown, walk out of the wings and toward the microphone. Margot is clutching a golden envelope.]_

 

 _Lin-Manuel Miranda:_ Tonight’s nominees range from an arrogant and deceptive Shakespearean king, to a young boy falling in love in the Italian countryside, to a man drawn into an untimely plot when he visits his girlfriend’s family. Here are the nominees for Best Actor!

 

_[The clips of the various actors from the movies play.]_

 

 _Margot Robbie:_ And the Oscar goes to… _[She opens the envelope gently and pulls out a white piece of paper.]_ James Barnes for his role as Macbeth in _Macbeth_!

 

_[As the audience erupts into applause, the cameras pan over to the front row where James Barnes is seated between his co-star Trish Walker and a handsome blond man who can be recognized as Captain Steve Rogers. James glances around in disbelief, eyes wide and mouth dropped slightly. Trish smiles at James and motions for him to get up. Before he can, Steve leans over to whisper something in his ear that causes James to beam. He stands up on wavering legs but seems to gain his composure as he dashes up the stairs and to the microphone, accepting the golden Oscar statuette from a stage attendee. He clutches it with whitened fingers before taking his place in front of the microphone and speaking breathlessly into it once the applause breaks off.]_

 

 _James Barnes:_ Holy shit. Holy shit! _[He glances down at the statuette, examining it with apprehension, before glancing up and locking eyes with Steve briefly, who nods.]_ I can’t, I can’t believe this. Okay. Apparently, I only have thirty seconds, and, since I don’t want to be played off stage, I better get started. I’d like to thank, as cliched as it is, the Academy and everyone who voted for me. Taika, wherever you are in this audience, you’re the man! _[The camera turns to a laughing Taika Waititi.]_ Thank you for even giving me the opportunity to be Macbeth. Trish, you’re a lovely murder buddy as Lady Macbeth. _[The audience laughs, and Trish gives James a thumbs up.]_ Also, thank you to the rest of the cast and the crew and anyone and everyone who helped me with this role in any way. And, before I forget my family and my sister murders me, thank you to Mom and Dad, may they rest in peace, for raising me and Becca right. Thank you to Becca and my future sister-in-law Daisy. I told you I was the better child, Becca! _[The audience chuckles again.]_ Thank you to Clint and everyone else of my friends. _[He takes a moment to breathe, bringing a pause to his rambling and surveying the audience. James appears to compose himself and smile slightly.]_ And, of course, thank you to my boyfriend Steve! I love you!

 

_[The audience bursts into loud applause, and James bows slightly. With pink cheeks and a permanent smile, he turns and walks gracefully off the stage. When he reaches his seat, Steve springs up, and they share a brief but passionate kiss before Steve wraps him in a tight hug. After a moment, they sit down, and the cameras trace one last time over the couple, Steve who is radiant with his pride and James whose eyes have a slightly glassy look.]_

 

* * *

 

superbarnesfan 

> holy fucking shit! did james barnes just do that? DID JAMES BARNES JUST DO THAT???

#james barnes #the oscars #i’m speechless #ufehiuheivheriuvheri

 

jaimesbarnes

> I can’t believe it. I can’t believe it! Of all the places to come out! I can’t believe it! I’m proud of our boy! And, did I mention, he won that Oscar!

#james barnes #coming out #lbgtq positivity #nina rambles

 

stamesforever

> I think I need to go cry in a corner. James’s speech was so beautiful! Stames is real. It was confirmed. Stames is canon!

#james barnes # steve rogers #stames #stames is canon #james confirmed himself

 

stevengbarnes

> THIS IS NOT A DRILL! I REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A DRILL! STEVE ROGERS AND JAMES BARNES ARE A REAL COUPLE! JAMES BARNES AND STEVE ROGERS ARE A REAL COUPLE!

#I CANNOT BELIEVE IT #I’M CRYING #THIS IS SUCH A BIG STEP FOR REPRESENTATION #A NATIONAL ICON SUPERHERO AND HIS ACTOR BOYFRIEND

 

hotandbotheredforrogers

> James really is the captain of our ship. Hang in there, kids, a trip through this fandom’s gonna be a rocky ride for a few days!

#stames #omg #can’t believe it

 

* * *

 

“I’m so proud of you,” Steve murmurs into his boyfriend’s ear. Despite the chaos and noise surrounding them from the party and the photographers, Steve knows that Bucky can hear him loud and clear, and he takes full advantage of that fact.

Bucky gives him an adoring look in response, snaking his arms around Steve’s neck and pulling him in for a quick, spine-tingling kiss. “I love you so much,” Bucky announces when they part. “I love you so much that I can’t even pronounce it in words.” He nuzzles into Steve’s shoulder slightly.

“I thought that public-speaking was a part of the job,” Steve teases, flicking Bucky on the nose. “You must not be a very good actor then.”

“Shuddup,” Bucky replies with false indignation. Pointing his chin and transforming his voice into something prim and airy, he continues, “I’ll have you know that I won an Oscar tonight.” He sniffs and then turns to face Steve with an expectant expression. “How’s that for acting?”

Before Steve can reply, a photographer from a nearby corner of the room calls, “Mr. Barnes! I’m a reporter with a local paper. Can I have a quick quote from you?”

Bucky smiles, his usual polite and charming expression he wears for the public and media, but, tonight, there’s something genuine in it, a childish joy. “Just give me a moment,” he calls back. Then he turns to Steve, and his eyes darken. “When we get back to the hotel room tonight,” he purrs, voice slippery and smooth like butter, “I am going to peel that tux off of you with my teeth.”

“Noted,” Steve replies, notably breathless as he shudders. Blood pools downwards to his nether regions, but he shakes off the haze and forces himself to concentrate.

“Hey! Steve!”

Trish is waving from across the room for him to come join her, Jessica on her arm.

Steve weaves his way through the crowd and arrives by their side. “Wow,” he says. “This place is crowded tonight. Is it always like this?”

“At least there’s alcohol here tonight,” Jessica grumbles, tucking a shock of dark hair behind her ear. She’s clutching a flute of champagne and looks almost as happy as the flash of joy that had flooded her face when Trish had won her own Oscar. Jessica takes a sip of the bubbly liquid and wrinkles her nose upon swallowing. “Never mind. It’s the sweet shit. Gross.”

“What Jess means to say,” Trish adds brightly, “is that we wouldn’t know. This is the first Oscars after-party either of us have been to.” She smiles and, for a moment, Steve wonders how a woman this bright and bubbly portrayed someone as dark and morbid as Lady Macbeth. “Would you like some champagne?” she offers Steve.

“No, thank you,” Steve refuses politely. “Bucky and I have already taste-tested the alcohol. We’re not really big drinkers.”

Alcohol would not work on either of them is what Steve actually means.

“I was relistening to some of your older Trish Talks episodes,” Steve mentions. “I especially liked how you handled your interaction with J. Jonah Jameson. The guy sounds like such an asshole.”

Jessica scowls darkly, but Trish only groans. “He really was,” she says with expressive eyes. “You won’t believe how much he kept glancing at my breasts. So creepy!”

They break off into a trickling conversation, with Jessica throwing in snappy one-liners from moment to moment that never fail to amuse Steve. Bucky is still making his rounds on the other side of the room, and he throws Steve a helpless look, but Steve only smiles in amusement and asks Trish about her ideal guest on her show. Trish eventually extends the offer for him and Bucky or just one of them to be a guest, and he tells her that he’d love to, and he’s sure that Bucky would too.

It’s been at least an hour when Steve glances down at his watch and realizes that it’s a few minutes past dawn. “Damn,” he says, showing Trish and Jessica the time. “How long do these events last?”

Jessica shrugs unhelpfully.

Finally, about twenty minutes later, when both women have made their way to a nearby waiter and are unloading him of canapes and little crab cakes, Steve lifts his head and finds Bucky finally heading back towards him.

 _Okay_? he asks silently.

 _So bored_ , Bucky voices back with a roll of his eyes. _I need some alcohol._

It happens in slow motion.

Steve’s beaming up at Bucky who is only feet away. Trish and Jessica’s approaching chatter floats up to Steve’s ears amongst the rest of the noise from the partygoers. Bucky extends a hand to Steve, and Steve’s eyes accidentally fall on a security guard standing in an extreme corner of the room. He’s tapping his foot frequently and checking his watch until his hand begins to inch toward his pocket.

For what feels like the first moment in Steve’s life, his supersoldier reflexes fail him as he moves to shove Bucky to the ground and cover him and yell out a warning to the rest of the room.

Then there’s a heart-pounding boom, and the ground trembles, the marble floor cracking, and the party explodes into flames and chaos.

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: Bomb explodes outside of Stark Tower in early morning Manhattan. Casualties are yet to be confirmed. Emergency responders are arriving on the scene, though the Avengers are already present.**

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: Bomb explodes in Agent Everett Ross’s office in the Department of Sokovian Accords building in Washington DC. The agent has been confirmed as alive, but there is yet to be word on other survivors or victims.**

 

* * *

**BREAKING: Bomb explodes at Netflix Oscars afterparty in early morning LA. Casualties are yet to be confirmed, but Captain Steve Rogers, actor James Barnes, actress Trish Walker, and others are among the survivors.**

 

* * *

**Transcript of a YouTube video posted on March 4, 2018**

_[The camera is shaky and of lower quality, but the scene it is filming is clearly the site of the explosion in New York. There is rubble and dust everywhere, but several figures are able to be made out. There is a short, skinny boy around seventeen, his features blurry, lifting large blocks of rubble. Several feet away is a large African-American man in an eye-catchingly bright yellow shirt who is reaching for a hand sticking up from amongst the rubble. The camera pans across the scene where a woman with distinctive Asian features is somehow blasting away at the broken stone and steel beams. Behind her, civilians are listening intently to a brunet man in a suit and with round, red glasses gesturing in certain directions. A few yards away, a businessman with unruly curls is kneeling besides a survivor whose face is contorted in pain. The man’s hands are placed over the survivor’s side and are glowing orange.]_

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: The perpetrator of the attacks in LA, New York, and DC has been identified. Brock Rumlow, a former double agent for the Nazi organization HYDRA, was found responsible by the Avengers but killed in the battle in the aftermath of the Stark Tower explosion. More information to follow as uncovered.**

 

* * *

 

“I don’t feel right about doing this,” Bucky admits as he slips into the car that Steve borrowed from Tony. “People’ve died. We shouldn’t be doing this.”

“Buck,” Steve says reassuringly from the driver’s seat, briefly wrapping his hands around his boyfriend’s. “It’s your birthday. You’re allowed one day.” When Bucky still looks skeptical, his teeth worrying away at his bottom lip, Steve undoes his seat belt to lean closer and nuzzle his nose against Bucky’s. “The world will be alright for one night,” he whispers. “We’ll deal with everything in the morning. Just let yourself have today.”

“Alright,” Bucky agrees reluctantly, relaxing against the soft leather of his seat. “Just today.”

After pecking Bucky on the cheek, Steve straightens in his seat and reattaches his belt, starting the car with a twist of the key.

As the car speeds down the mostly empty Brooklyn street, which is unusual considering that it’s barely evening, Steve sneaks peeks at Bucky, whose head lolls against the headrest as he stares out the window.

Bucky hasn’t seemed the same since the Oscars party; he took the bombs and their casualties harder than Steve did. Still, it’s to be expected. Despite all that Bucky has experienced as the Winter Soldier, at heart, he is still a civilian and, unlike Steve, had never been this close to something like the explosions.

But, still, it’s Bucky’s birthday, and Steve would give anything to see his boyfriend smile the way he had done when he won that Oscar again, even if it’s only for a moment.

They spend the next three hours of the drive in relative silence, Steve throwing out the occasional commentary about their surroundings and Bucky replying briefly.

When they finally reach their location, a secret to which only Steve had been privy to, the sky has darkened but is still light enough to make out their surroundings.

Bucky lifts his head off the window to glance up in astonishment at the patch of woods besides them. “Where are we?” he asks in bewilderment.

“Near Albany,” Steve replies as he parks the car along a little curve in the road and turns off the engine, turning to Bucky expectantly.

“What are we doing here?” he asks, eyebrows furrowing together like a fuzzy worm.

“It’s a surprise,” states Steve mysteriously. “Now, let’s go.”

Bucky hums, rolling his eyes at Steve’s noncommittal response. He opens the door and slips to his feet, the gravel crunching below his combat boots. “Lead the way, Captain, oh, Captain,” he says to Steve with a bemused smile.

The car’s locks click automatically as Steve and Bucky proceed towards the edge of the trees. “The path should be here somewhere,” Steve mutters to himself, searching for the break in the trees.

To Bucky’s credit, he doesn’t ask what Steve is searching for.

Finally, Steve’s eyes land on the dirt trail that’s almost invisible to everyone except the knowing onlooker. “This way,” he says, walking in the direction of the trail, Bucky close behind him.

It’s a fifteen-minute hike up to their location, but Steve and Bucky’s serums make it seven. After they round a bend in the trail, their location finally comes in sight as the trail opens up to a decent-sized clearing.

“Holy fucking shit,” Bucky gasps, swiveling around so quickly that he’s almost a blur, even to Steve’s supersoldiered eyes. He steps closer to Steve, clutching his boyfriend’s shoulders to stare up at him with pleading, optimistic eyes. “You didn’t, Stevie. Tell me you didn’t. This can’t be what I think it is.”

“It is,” Steve confirms in amusement, lips curving up into a smile at Bucky’s enthusiasm.

“It’s a treehouse!” Bucky squeals. “Oh my…I can’t believe. It’s a fucking treehouse!” He flails adorably in excitement, seemingly at a loss of words. Attacking Steve’s face with kisses, mostly missing his mouth, he whispers, “Gah. I love you, you blond dorito!”

There are steps sloping upwards to the treehouse, a little rustic-looking building nestled between two trees, with fairy lights woven around the railing.

“Happy birthday, Buck,” Steve says, tracing Bucky’s ear with a gentle finger. “You wanna see inside?”

The bed inside, thankfully, is large and durable enough for two supersoldiers when Steve and Bucky fall into bed giggling, drunk on happiness and lust.

 

* * *

 

**TRENDING: Video of powered individuals helping out at the site of the Stark Tower explosion has gone viral on YouTube, hitting 32 million views.**

 

* * *

**Transcript of Captain Steve Rogers’s speech at the site of the Stark Tower explosion on March 12, 2018**

_[Captain Rogers takes his place at the podium and glances down at his empty hands and then around him at the sea of reporters and civilians gathered to hear him speak. He wears not his Captain America uniform but instead a somber suit. His eyes are heavy with melancholy, and, when he begins to speak, the words do not come easy.]_

 

 _Captain Rogers:_ When I…When I was on the Valkyrie, sitting in the pilot’s chair, watching the plane go down, one of the only thoughts that had me at peace was that HYDRA was coming down with me. _[He sighs. His audience watches with bated breath.]_ It’s been eight days since the HYDRA attacks, and it is time for us to ask the question: Have the Sokovian Accords really protected us? _[He glances up, painful honesty in his eyes.]_ While I was sleeping in the ice, the remains of HYDRA came overseas and planted their roots in SHIELD. They grew and grew and grew but fell victim to the shutdown of SHIELD. Under the watchful gaze of the United Nations and the Accords, HYDRA rebuilt itself under the malicious eye of Brock Rumlow.

 

_[There is commotion from the audience, but Rogers continues on.]_

 

 _Rogers:_ HYDRA was brought to the Avengers’ attention by New York’s infamous vigilante duo, Nomad and the Winter Soldier. They left us enough information to start dismantling HYDRA, but they couldn’t do more. They would be at risk to be prosecuted under the Sokovian Accords. But, perhaps if powered people like them could do more, the HYDRA attacks could have been avoided.

 

_[A shout rings out, and Rogers’s head snaps to the audience, eyebrows raised challengingly.]_

 

 _Rogers:_ I’m sure that most of you have seen the video floating around, of the various powered individuals helping in the aftermath of the New York explosion. We can see what they can do, how they can help, but they cannot be identified from the video. It’s too blurry, for which I am glad. Because they too would be prosecuted under the Sokovian Accords. _[With pursed lips, he straightens, gazing straight at the nearest camera, hands braced on the podium.]_ So, I ask you again. Have the Sokovian Accords truly protected us, or is it time for change?

 

* * *

 

**BREAKING: King T’Challa of Wakanda announced in a UN address that Wakanda will be pulling their support from the Sokovian Accords. Rumor has it that Wakanda will be the first of many countries.**

 

* * *

 

When the day of the Johnson-Barnes wedding finally comes, the sky's the clearest blue that New York has seen in days, a shade that Bucky remarks is “the color of your eyes, Stevie.” There is no sign of rain, not even a cloud in sight. The late winter sun casts light over the rose garden where the ceremony is to occur. Seated in the front row besides a scruffy-looking Brit and a gorgeous blonde who appears to be his wife, Steve has an excellent view of the gazebo where the vows will be exchanged. Waiting awkwardly besides the gazebo is Phil Coulson, who Steve hasn’t seen the Avengers received news of the man’s mysterious resurrection in 2014, and who is to officiate the ceremony.

The small quartet of musicians on the gazebo’s right ready their instruments, and then they begin to play the familiar strains of the wedding song that Steve has heard several times since the rehearsal dinner.

All the guests turn in their seats, Steve with them, and there are gasps and sighs as the first bridal party appears.

Daisy’s best friends, Leo Fitz and his wife Jemma Simmons, strolls down the center aisle first, hand-in-hand and beaming. Next down the aisle is Daisy’s mother-figure Melinda May, eyes vigilant around the garden but with a genuine smile.

Finally, Daisy herself appears at the end of the aisle, wearing a gorgeous white dress with lace sleeves. Her dark hair is braided up into a crown with daisies tucked in between the interwoven locks. There are only the diamonds glittering at her earlobes and the simple, silver band on her finger, her hands curled around her bouquet of daisies.

She is one of the most beautiful brides that Steve has ever seen, and his fingers itch with the unconscious need to sketch her and capture her onto paper.

Inching forward gracefully, Daisy reaches the end of the aisle and steps onto the gazebo. She exchanges a hug with Coulson, who plants a quick kiss on her cheek, and then stands there on the gazebo, solitary, waiting.

The music changes into a tune softer and more airy that fills the garden and wraps itself around Steve, reminding him of distinctive ocean eyes and a wry smirk.

Rebecca Barnes waits at the beginning of the aisle, her brother on her arm. If Daisy’s dress was elegant and minimalistic, Becca’s is something straight out of a fairytale with a puffy skirt of silk and taffeta and a sweetheart neckline. Her mahogany hair is let down in winding curls, and her eyes are so bright that they rival the sun.

Bucky, in a flattering light-grey suit with a silver tie, is having trouble keeping his face neutral. His nose keeps scrunching up, and Steve can tell that he is suppressing a goofy smile.

When Becca reaches the gazebo, she shakes Coulson’s hand before taking her place opposite her bride. They smile softly at each other, eyes communicating the emotion that their voice cannot.

“Dearly beloved,” Coulson begins, glancing proudly upon Daisy and her future wife, “we are gathered here today to join Daisy and Becca in matrimony.” He pauses. “Daisy Louise Johnson, do you take this woman to be your wife, to live together in matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?”

“I do,” Daisy replies with a fierce nod. “I totally fucking do.”

Becca laughs, her bottom lip wobbling. Behind her, Bucky places a supportive hand on her shoulder briefly before stepping back.

Coulson nods, turning to Becca. “And, Rebecca Winifred Barnes, do you take this woman to be your wife, to live together in matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?”

Becca doesn’t even hesitate. “I do.”

“Now,” Coulson say to Daisy, “Repeat after me: ‘I, Daisy Johnson, take you, Rebecca Barnes, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.’”

“I, Daisy Johnson,” Daisy begins, her voice quavering and her eyes dampening, “take you, Rebecca Barnes, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”

Steve watches with bated breath.

“And, Becca,” Coulson continues, “Repeat after me: ‘I, Rebecca Barnes, take you, Daisy Johnson, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.’”

Becca swallows, swiping a thumb under her eyes to brush off the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. “I, Rebecca Barnes, take you, Daisy Johnson, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”

Coulson leads them through the exchanging of the rings, and, not before long, he is proclaiming, “The brides may kiss for the first time as wife-and-wife!” As Daisy and Becca lean forward and their lips meet in a passionate kiss, the audience explodes into cheers and applause, Bucky the loudest of them all.

When they part, beaming, Coulson announces, “The brides will now share their first dance as a married couple.”

Daisy extends her hand to Becca who takes it, and then they rush to the makeshift dance floor as the musicians begin their third song.

With extraordinary grace and balance, Becca reaches for and twirls Daisy in an elaborate series of twists and spins that are quick and delicate. Steve cannot take his eyes off them as the couple traverses the entire floor in rhythm to the slow crescendos of the song.

Finally, Becca dips Daisy downwards dramatically as the tune fades into a new song, grinning down at her wife. They pose like that in that picture-perfect moment before Becca slowly pulls her wife up and into her arms. Daisy slips her arms around Becca’s waist, and they share another sweet kiss.

Eventually, more and more couples flock to the dance floor as the songs vary and change. When the musicians pick up the beat with a jazzy, fast tempo, Coulson pulls May to the floor to lead her in an impressive tango that leave Daisy, Fitz, and Simmons cheering and clapping.

Steve remains in the corner the entire time, watching Bucky twirl Becca when it comes time for what would have been the father-daughter dance, Becca’s face streaming tears the entire time while Bucky doesn’t bother to stop his own.

Finally, Bucky approaches Steve with eyes that are puffy and damp and a smiling mouth. “Heya, Stevie,” he says in greeting, placing a quick peck on Steve’s lips, “whatcha doing in this corner over here by yourself? Did no one asked you to dance?”

“I can’t dance,” Steve admits, blushing brightly, and Bucky’s eyebrows raise in surprise. “I never learned,” Steve continues sheepishly. “There’s never been a reason that I needed to know.”

“Oh, Steve,” Bucky replies, shaking his head, smile growing. “You don’t need to know. It’s not about how you dance. It’s about where and with whom.” He pulls a helpless Steve to the dance floor.

They stand there with Steve’s feet frozen solid to the floor as he gazes with pleading eyes at his boyfriend. “Buck, c’mon.”

“Nope!” Bucky says cheerfully. “Just wrap your arms around me.”

Steve complies, moving closer to Bucky until their chests brush against each other. “Now, what?” he asks.

His boyfriend throws back his head and laughs handsomely. “Now, just move,” he explains.

At first, they sway awkwardly in place as Steve attempts to move in rhythm to the music, but then Bucky says, “Steve. Wait. Just close your eyes and move with me.”

Steve scowls at him, and Bucky just smiles back patiently, but then Steve’s eyes flutter shut, and, before he realizes it, he’s stepping in time to the music.

It’s not perfect; Steve steps on Bucky’s shoe several times, and Bucky has to gently guide him a few times, but it’s lovely, and Steve can’t take his eyes off Bucky.

Eventually, they lapse back into swaying from side-to-side to the music as the band begins to slow down and other couples around them do the same. Becca and Daisy are seated at a table facing the dance floor, heels scattered messily in the grass before them, gently holding hands. Out of the corner of his eye, Steve catches Becca winking at Bucky before turning to stroke Daisy’s chin tenderly and kiss her.

He’s happy for them, he realizes, but also slightly envious.

“You know,” Bucky begins conversationally, “if you keep making that face, it’ll freeze like that, and everyone will ask, what happened to Steve Rogers? He used to be so hot. And I’ll have to tell everyone that I’m dating him to keep the rest of the world safe from his ugly mug.”

“That’s funny,” Steve comments dryly. “I can always just tell the press that you drool when you sleep.”

Bucky yelps. “I do not!”

Steve nods, snickering. “You do. I can attest to it. Ya know, since I share a bed with you and everything.” He bops an indignant Bucky on the nose with his finger. “Now, who’s making the ugly face?”

His boyfriend pouts. “You’re so mean,” he whines slightly. “You make me sound like a doofus.”

Leaning closer, Steve captures Bucky’s lips in a soft kiss. “You may be a doofus,” he tells Bucky gently. “But you’re my doofus.”

“I love you,” Bucky replies dopily.

“I love you too,” Steve answers. He pauses for a moment. “What are you thinking?” he asks Bucky gently.

“How Mom and Dad should have been here for everything,” Bucky replies honestly. “They would have been so happy to meet Daisy. They’d be happy to meet you. I dunno about Dad, but I know that Mom would have pulled your cheeks and insisted on teaching you to dance.”

Steve chuckles, his heart swelling, but tears still prick at the corner of his eyes. “Ma would have loved you,” he tells Bucky through what feels like a mouth full of cotton. “She always said that she wanted to see her sunshine boy in love.”

“Hey,” Bucky says, poking him in the shoulder. “You don’t get to be sad. This is a wedding. Weddings are supposed to be joyous.”

“Says the man who was crying himself an hour ago,” Steve snarks back, drying his eyes with his handkerchief before stuffing the cloth back into his pocket.

“You can cry at our own wedding. Leave the tears for this one to Daisy and Becca,” Bucky remarks.

“Will there?” Steve asks quietly. “Be a wedding? Will there be a wedding for us, I mean?”

Bucky smiles. “I love you, Steve, and I want to live the rest of my life with you by my side.”

“As do I,” Steve states plainly, unable to keep his voice from wavering.

And, one day, that day will come for Steve and Bucky, but that’s a story for another day.

 

* * *

 

_[img: Daisy and Becca pose in front of a hedge of colorful roses, faces turned toward each other as they gaze into each other’s eyes. The rest of the background is hazy, allowing the eyes of the viewer to be drawn to the happy couple in the center.]_

**45, 609 likes**

**therealjamesbarnes** The loveliest brides I could ever imagine

 **beccabarnes** You and Steve will be almost as beautiful as us, big bro.

 

* * *

 

**The Fifteen Times You Wished That You And Your SO Were Steve Rogers and James Barnes**

They are couple goals! OTP!

 

* * *

 

_[img: Bucky and Steve face each other under the gazebo in the rose garden. They are gazing into each other’s eyes breathlessly, transfixed. Neither is willing to look away. There is so much powerful adoration and love written plainly on their faces. These are two men in true love.]_

**986, 999 likes**

**officialsteverogers** helpless (look into your eyes and the sky’s the limit)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Congratulations! You made it to the end of the fic, but, if you enjoyed it, fear not! This is not the end of the helpless!verse. I will be writing a few more little add-ons and teasers and ficlets for the future. If there's something you'd like to see in this verse, let me know in the comments! Of course, the art by the lovely frau_argh will be posted on March 15, and, lemme tell you that it's gorgeous! Follow me on tumblr [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/). Reblog the tumblr post [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/post/171228104779/the-sokovian-accords-were-created-right-after-the).

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos make the world go 'round! Follow me on tumblr [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/). Reblog the tumblr post [here](https://princess-of-the-worlds.tumblr.com/post/171228104779/the-sokovian-accords-were-created-right-after-the).


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